Commentary The Australian and Japanese prime ministers met virtually on Jan. 6 and signed a Reciprocal Access Agreement (RAA) that makes it easier for each nation’s troops to operate in each other’s country. As important, it strengthens the political and psychological groundwork for increased military cooperation between the two nations. The Good News It’s the first such agreement Japan has signed with a country besides the United States. And it took a while. An agreement in principle was reached in November 2020 between Japan’s then-Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga and Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison—after six years of negotiating. It took another 14 months to finalize the deal. The door is now open wide in both directions for practically any initiative the two sides desire. One should remember, however, that the Japanese and Australian militaries are not strangers. Japanese forces have been training in Australia since the early 2010s, to include …
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