The United States and Japan agreed Saturday to strengthen the U.S. defense of its close ally against any nuclear attack by North Korea _ Japan's top security concern.
The U.S. has established a "nuclear umbrella" to protect Japan and other non-nuclear allies from possible attack. The umbrella comprises U.S.-based nuclear weapons, including ballistic missiles with nuclear warheads, and nuclear submarines, in a system that has been in place since the Cold War. Japan does not allow nuclear weapons on its territory.
U.S. and Japanese officials in charge of defense and foreign affairs decided Saturday to hold regular talks on how to boost the effectiveness of the defense system, a Japanese Foreign Ministry official said on condition of anonymity, citing protocol.
They also agreed to increase efforts to encourage North Korea to return to international disarmament talks.
Kurt Campbell, U.S. assistant secretary of state for East Asian and Pacific affairs who attended the meeting, told Japanese public broadcaster NHK that a first meeting is expected in Washington in several weeks for "a deep discussion about the elements of nuclear deterrence."
He added that the U.S. is committed to providing the deterrence for Japan and that "our extended nuclear umbrella remains strong and stable."
Campbell and Assistant Secretary of Defense Wallace Gregson completed the bilateral talks Saturday with Japanese counterparts Kazuyoshi Umemoto, the Foreign Ministry's director general for North America, and Nobushige Takamizawa, the Defense Ministry's director general.
The meeting finished a day after the Defense Ministry said in an annual report that North Korea is an increasing threat and may be capable of building a nuclear device small enough to be launched on a missile sooner than expected. It also noted that North Korean leader Kim Jong Il's health and a leadership succession could be destabilizing factors.
Six-nation talks on North Korea came to a halt in April when the North withdrew to protest a U.N. statement condemning what Pyongyang described as a satellite launch. Japan, the U.S. and their allies said the launch was a long-range missile test.
North Korea conducted its second underground nuclear test in May, drawing further condemnation and sanctions.
Campbell said Friday it was not too late for North Korea to return to the talks. But Kim Yong Nam, the North's No. 2 official, has said Pyongyang is not ready to resume the talks because the U.S. and its allies do not respect its sovereignty.
The talks involve the two Koreas, the U.S., Japan, China and Russia.
The North's nuclear development has prompted some hawkish Japanese lawmakers to call for a debate over whether Japan should acquire nuclear arms as a deterrent.
But possession of nuclear weapons is a sensitive topic in Japan, the only country to suffer a nuclear attack.
The ministry official said the U.S. nuclear umbrella is "an extended deterrent" for Japan.
Under a bilateral security alliance, about 50,000 U.S. troops are stationed in Japan, most of them on southern Okinawa island. Tokyo and Washington have also boosted cooperation on a missile defense system.
