Australia and Japan Upgrade Security Pact to Counter Shifting Regional Threats, Deepen Critical Minerals Ties

On Saturday, October 22, in Perth, Western Australia, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida signed a new security cooperation agreement. It updates a pact the two countries first made in 2007, and both leaders said it was needed because the regional security environment has changed.

The signing came at the annual Australia-Japan Leaders' Meeting, the fourth summit between the two men since Albanese took office in May. The backdrop was China's push for greater influence in the Asia-Pacific, and the fact that both Australia and Japan are US allies. In May, the pair had pledged to work toward a new bilateral declaration on security cooperation; the Perth signing delivered it.

The agreement has practical content. Albanese said Japan's military would train and exercise in northern Australia alongside Australian Defense Force personnel. The two governments also agreed to consult and study responses to emergencies that could affect regional security. They described the document as a compass for security cooperation over the next decade.

Kishida called the signing one of the largest achievements of his visit. He also told reporters he had explained his determination to consider all necessary options for Japan's defense, including what he called a counterstrike capability, and that Japan's defense capability would be fundamentally reinforced over the next five years. He said Albanese supports that effort. He described the two countries' work toward a free and open Indo-Pacific as taking place under an increasingly severe strategic environment, and called Japan and Australia a central pillar of cooperation among like-minded countries.

The talks were not only about defense. The leaders discussed climate change and voiced support for a regional transition to net zero carbon emissions, along with more investment in clean energy technology. Albanese noted that both countries are committed to net zero by 2050. They agreed to help build secure supply chains for critical minerals, including those needed for green technologies. Albanese said the partnership would promote investment, develop Australia's domestic sector and make sure Japan's advanced manufacturers have the minerals they need. The Australian government's statement added that the arrangement would encourage information sharing and collaboration, including research, investment and commercial arrangements between Japanese and Australian critical minerals projects.

The choice of Perth, about 3,700 kilometers (2,300 miles) from the capital Canberra, was deliberate. It was meant to show how much Western Australia matters to Japan's energy supply, including renewable energy. Australia is a major supplier of iron ore, coal and gas to Japan, and Western Australia is also a key source of beef and wheat. Kishida said Albanese told him Australia intends to remain a reliable partner and a safe investment destination, and that the two agreed to further strengthen cooperation on energy and natural resources.

That matters especially to Japan, a resource-poor country for which stable energy supply has become more pressing since Russia's invasion of Ukraine raised the risk of supply disruption.

The earlier joint declaration covered cooperation on counter-terrorism and on North Korea's missile and nuclear weapons programs. In 2014 the two countries elevated their relationship to a Special Strategic Partnership. The new agreement is meant to guide ties for the next decade, and Japan's planned five-year buildup of its defense capability is the thing to watch.