​Early on Tuesday morning, Pedro Morenés visited the Yokosuka naval base - the largest in the country - where he was received by the Commander of the Japan Maritime Self-Defence Force (JMSDF), Vice-Admiral Elichi Funada, on board the "Ikazuchi" destroyer escort.

 

The Spanish minister then travelled to the headquarters of the Japanese Ministry of Defence, where he attended a meeting with his counterpart, Akinori Eto. At this meeting, Pedro Morenés conveyed Spain's interest to the Japanese Defence Minister in the process of reflection taking place in Japan, the purpose of which is to make a contribution to global peace and stability. He also conveyed the Government of Spain's gratitude for Japan's contribution to maritime security in the Horn of Africa and the financial effort being made by the country in Afghanistan, as well as its interest in continuing to be one of the countries making the largest contribution to that mission post-2014.

 

At the meeting, Akinori Eto and Pedro Morenés signed a Memorandum of Understanding that opens up a new era in bilateral defence relations between the two countries and that includes highly significant areas for joint efforts in the future, such as peacekeeping missions, crisis and emergency management (in which Japan expressed an interest), cyber-defence, high-level exchanges and strategic dialogue.

 

The visit by the Spanish minister to Japan follows on from the recent contact maintained between the two countries. In January 2013, the Japanese Deputy Defence Minister visited Spain and met with the Spanish Minister for Defence. Subsequently, in May 2014, the President of the Government, Mariano Rajoy, received the Japanese Prime Minister, Shinzo Abe, in Santiago de Compostela. Finally, in August 2014, the Japanese Deputy Defence Minister, Ryota Takeda, visited the Spanish State Secretary for Defence, Pedro Argüelles.