Japan and New Zealand are close to inking a key intelligence-sharing agreement and have committed to ramping up discussions to facilitate the exchange of military supplies and logistical support, Wellington's envoy to Tokyo has said, as the countries pave the way for greater defense and security cooperation.
“We share an awareness of the increasingly challenging strategic environment in the Indo-Pacific region and our leaders have agreed on the importance of further strengthening cooperation,” Ambassador Hamish Cooper told The Japan Times in an interview. New Zealand and Japan, he added, are working together to “identify further opportunities for bilateral and multilateral defense interactions.”
The moves, he said, are part of a reset in New Zealand’s foreign and defense policy as Wellington looks to step up engagements with its Asian partners.
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