Abe to seek Trump’s support for Indo-Pacific strategy

November 3, 2017

TOKYO- Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe will call on US President Donald Trump to work together for promoting an Abe-proposed strategy to realize a free and open Indo-Pacific region, during their meeting slated to be held in Japan on Monday, informed sources said Thursday.

Abe unveiled the strategy in a keynote speech he delivered at the sixth Tokyo International Conference on African Development, or TICAD VI, in the Kenyan capital of Nairobi in August 2016.

The strategy is designed to promote stability and growth of Asia and Africa lying along the Pacific Ocean and the Indian Ocean.

Specifically, it calls for providing infrastructure and security cooperation in a package to fast-growing Asia as well as Africa, which has huge growth potential, to make them a place free of force and coercion, where freedom and rule of law, and market economy are respected.

Tokyo hopes to promote the Indo-Pacific strategy with the United States to keep a check on China, which is boosting its presence in the regions, the sources said.

Under its "One Belt, One Road" strategy, China is helping improve roads, ports and other infrastructure in countries along the Indian Ocean, including Pakistan and Sri Lanka, to use them as its bases for maritime expansion.

Taking advantage of Trump's visit to Japan, Tokyo hope so prepare an environment allowing the United States to actively engage in efforts to deal with problems across Asia and Africa, the sources said.

Both Japan and the regions need US presence, a senior official of Japan's Foreign Ministry said. Jiji Press