Japan will use its turn next year in leadership roles at the Group of Seven and the United Nations to pressure Russia to halt its war in Ukraine, Foreign Minister Yoshimasa Hayashi has said.
"Russia's ongoing aggression against Ukraine is a clear violation of international law. It is an unacceptable and outrageous act threatening the very foundation of the international order," Hayashi said at the Reuters Next conference.
Japanese leaders have said Russia's attack on Ukraine poses a challenge to their own national security, and fear it may encourage North Korea to further threaten its neighbors and embolden China to use military force to push its territorial ambitions in the South China Sea and East Asia, including against nearby Taiwan.