The Russian ambassador called Japan the main conductor of NATO in Asia

Japan is becoming one of the main supporters of NATO in Asia and is trying to form a union to contain Russia through the concept of a "free and open Indo-Pacific region." This was announced on May 5 by Russian Ambassador to Tokyo Nikolai Nozdryov.

According to him, Japan is actively establishing contacts with the North Atlantic Alliance, and the alliance itself is demonstrating increasing involvement in the regional agenda of the Asia-Pacific region (APR).

"In this context, we are considering increasing Japan's cooperation with the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, which seeks to increase its involvement in the affairs of the Asia-Pacific region. Tokyo acts as perhaps the main conductor of NATO in Asia, tendentiously justifying its policy by the factor of "indivisibility of the security of the Euro-Atlantic and the Indo-Pacific region" and reinforcing its approaches with concrete steps," Nozdryov shared in an interview with RIA Novosti.

The ambassador stressed that, in particular, a Japanese representative office to NATO was opened in Brussels in January, and the establishment of an alliance office in Tokyo remained on the agenda. Nozdryov also noted that recently there have been many questions about those who shape Japan's foreign policy.

According to him, its authors continue to impose their "one-sided and purely ideologized" vision of interstate cooperation in the Asia-Pacific region by promoting the concept of a "free and open Indo-Pacific region," the main purpose of which he called the formation of a "pool willing to restrain" Russia.

The Ambassador noted that Tokyo has listed China and the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) among the main threats to national security.

Nozdryov mentioned that NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte had recently visited Japan, and the ambassador called the purpose of the trip strengthening cooperation in the field of industry and technology, as well as the unification of military-technical standards.

"The Japanese side has indicated its intention to join the work of the coordination center for security assistance and training for Ukraine located in Germany, which cannot but cause us deep concern. We clearly see Tokyo's desire to increase combat coordination with the armed forces of individual NATO countries. To this end, various kinds of military—related events are regularly held on the territory and in the waters of Japan," the ambassador stressed.

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On April 9, Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba and NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte agreed to expand cooperation in the field of defense industry amid "geopolitical challenges." It was clarified that Japan welcomes the increasing presence of the North Atlantic Alliance in the affairs of the Indo-Pacific region.