US hopes Japan navy will be more active in Pacific
Even as Japan remains divided over proposed changes in the role it should play in regional security issues, senior US and Japanese military officers say they hope the Japanese navy may soon be freed up to play a more active role in the Pacific and beyond, plying some of the world's most hotly contested waters.
Vice Adm. Robert Thomas, commander of the US Seventh Fleet, said he expects revisions headed for approval in Japan's parliament will make it easier for the Japanese and U.S. navies to cooperate more smoothly in the Indian and Pacific oceans and in "multilateral exercises across the region." Japan is setting up an amphibious unit similar to the US Marines to respond quickly to any invasion of islands also claimed by China. Japan is also planning to upgrade its air defenses with F-35 stealth fighters and Global Hawk drones.
