Japan and the United States are set to expand the scope of rear area assistance the Self-Defense Forces would provide to the American military in contingencies involving the Korean Peninsula as they seek to revise their defense cooperation guidelines later this year, a government source said Saturday in Tokyo.
In the revised guidelines, the two countries also envision protection by the SDF of U.S. vessels vigilant for missile launches or transporting Japanese nationals in the event the United States comes under armed attack.
In the first change of the guidelines in 17 years, the two sides also contemplate promotion of joint use of military bases by the SDF and U.S. forces, tighter surveillance and monitoring of areas near the Japan-held but disputed Senkaku Islands in the East China Sea and cooperation over cyberattacks and defense equipment, according to the source. The Senkaku Islands are also claimed by China.