Japan, Australia sign historic military pact to counter China

The Reciprocal Access Agreement (RAA) between Japan and Australia, which came into force on August 13, reflects the Special Strategic Partnership between Australia and Japan at a time when both countries are concerned about China’s aggressive plans in the Indo-Pacific.

The Reciprocal Access Agreement (RAA) is expected to make it possible for the militaries of Australia and Japan to work together more closely on training, base access, and logistics.

The RAA provides the legal framework for increased defence collaboration between the Australian Defence Force and the Japan Self-Defense Force (JSDF), according to the simultaneous issuance of a statement from the foreign offices of both nations.

It is the first agreement for visiting forces that Japan has made with a nation other than the US. The second nation whose armed forces will now be permitted on Japanese soil is Australia.

Practically speaking, this Agreement will result in greater training and exercises between the two nations, including, among other things:

• At the end of August, the first Japanese F-35s will be sent to Australia and stationed at RAAF Base Tindal
• Early September will see the first deployment of Australian F-35s to Japan as part of Exercise Bushido Guardian; and,

With more than 150 soldiers travelling to Japan in December, Australia will take part in Exercise Yama Sakura for the first time as a full participant.

“Through greater cooperation and increased capacity for both the ADF and JSDF, the Reciprocal Access Agreement will enhance the bond between our respective armed forces. Australia and Japan acknowledge the need to strengthen their collaboration in order to promote a secure and prosperous region and the growing complexity of our security environment,” Australia’s Deputy Prime Minister Richard Marles told the media.

Yoshimasa Hayashi, the foreign minister of Japan, declared that the RAA will improve bilateral collaboration. It is a “landmark agreement that will take Japan-Australia security cooperation to a new level,” according to Japanese Prime Minister Kishida.

Even though the RAA is currently in effect, it was actually signed by the then-Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison and his Japanese counterpart Fumio Kishida at the 2021 Annual Leaders’ Summit Meeting. Both nations recognised the need for it in light of what was perceived to be a combination of provocative and persistent actions coming from Beijing, including economic pressure on Australia, increased Chinese military patrols close to the Senkaku Islands, which China claims as Diaoyu-Dao and administration of the islands by Japan.

It was believed that the RAA would make it easier to move weapons and equipment for joint training exercises and humanitarian missions, as well as permit the deployment and training of Japanese military personnel in Australia and vice versa.

According to some Japanese experts, Tokyo clearly feels vulnerable towards China—and more recently Russia—in relation to territorial disputes and growing military assertiveness in the region, as well as the semi-regular brinkmanship of North Korea, given the absence of any NATO-like mutual defence alliance in the Indo-Pacific and the vicissitudes of US politics making future US commitments to Japan’s security unpredictable.

Similar geopolitical weaknesses exist between Australia and China. In that regard, it is stated that the RAA is a “minilateral” partnership between two parties that may subsequently be enlarged to include India.

The RAA seeks to go beyond the US-led regional alliance in the Indo-Pacific, according to Femy Francis and Dhriti Mukherjee of the National Institute of Advanced Studies in Bengaluru.

The US has successfully negotiated Asian geopolitics for many years by swaying like-minded regional players. It exploited these regional competitors to challenge and dissuade nations like China and Russia. By establishing an alternative security partnership like the RAA, Australia and Japan can leverage their negotiating position with the United States (US) and China.

However, there were several obstacles that needed to be surmounted in both Australia and Japan for the RAA’s conclusion. Australians were concerned that ADF members stationed in Japan would face the death penalty for major offences under Japanese law.

Due to lingering historical impressions of Japan, particularly the 1942 Japanese attacks on Darwin during the Pacific War, many in Australia also believed that the subject of the stationing of JSDF forces on Australian land required careful and sensitive handling.