TOKYO: Japan and France will hold so-called two-plus-two security talks via videoconference among their foreign and defense ministers on Thursday, Japanese Foreign Minister Yoshimasa Hayashi said Tuesday.

The talks are apparently intended to strengthen the two countries’ cooperation to counter China’s hegemonic ambitions.

“We’ll discuss defense cooperation, regional situations and other issues broadly,” Hayashi told a press conference.

It will be the sixth two-plus-two meeting between Japan and France and the first since January 2019.

Japan’s Self-Defense Forces and the French military have been enhancing cooperation, including by conducting a joint drill on the assumption of defense of remote islands.

Also at the upcoming meeting, the two sides are expected to exchange opinions on a possible bilateral agreement stipulating the legal status of Japanese SDF personnel and French troops while in each other’s territory.

JIJI Press