Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has emerged with renewed confidence in the US-Japan alliance following his weekend at US President Trump’s Mar-a-Lago country club. But concerns remain about the strength of this pivotal Asia-Pacific relationship.  

Japan’s security dilemmas still sit high on the agenda for Abe and he must deftly balance domestic and international interests—from constitutional reform and the question of a standing army, to the still uncertain US security commitments and Japan’s financial contributions.

Former Japanese Defence Minister Satoshi Morimoto spoke with Lisa Green of the AIIA’s National Office at the ANU National Security College’s recent conference, Strengthening Australia-Japan-US Strategic Cooperation: Prospects and Challenges in Canberra.

Satoshi Morimoto is a former Japanese defence minister. He is now a professor at Takushoku University and a member of the Congressional Forum for New Japan.

Interviewed by Lisa Green

Filmed by Madeleine Durand