
TOKYO: Defense heads of Japan and three Pacific island countries will hold a meeting in Tokyo in early April, Japanese Defense Minister Taro Kono said Friday.
Participants will include the defense ministers of Papua New Guinea, Fiji and Tonga as well as officials of the United States, Britain, France, Australia and New Zealand.
"I want to build relationships of trust, hoping that the meeting will lead to the promotion of defense cooperation," Kono told a press conference.
China's influence is growing in the Pacific region.
JIJI Press