Japanese FM warns of increasing China-Russia military collaboration

Stockholm, May 14

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Japanese Foreign Minister Yoshimasa Hayashi has expressed concern about Russian and Chinese military cooperation in Asia and said the security situation in Europe could not be separated from that in the Indo-Pacific region since Moscow’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

Speaking at a meeting of European and Indo-Pacific foreign ministers in Sweden, Hayashi said Russia’s war in Ukraine had “shaken the very foundation of the international order” and must face a united response by the international community.

“Otherwise, similar challenges will arise in other regions,” Hayashi said.

Japan firmly backs Ukraine in the war but China says it remains neutral while declaring a “no limits” relationship with Moscow and blaming the US and NATO for provoking the conflict.

Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida visited the Ukrainian capital, Kyiv, in March at the same time as Chinese President Xi Jinping met Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin in Moscow. — AP