(VOVworld) - Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and U.S. President Barack Obama agreed on Sunday to strengthen security ties to enhance stability in the Asia-Pacific region. During their talks on the sidelines of a Group of 20 summit in Brisbane, Australia, the two leaders pledged to team up to revise bilateral defense cooperation guidelines. Obama agreed with Abe’s statement that it was important for Japan and the US to strengthen cooperation based on the Japan-US alliance in order to play a leading role in the Asia-Pacific region.
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| Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and U.S. President Barack Obama converse on the sidelines of the Group of 20 summit in Brisbane, Australia, on Sunday. (Photo: Kyodo) |
Tokyo and Washington are working on a revision to bilateral defense cooperation guidelines, the first in 17 years, making it better fit the current security environment in the region. Both sides hope to revise the guidelines by the end of this year.