Japan approves agreement to host US troops, strengthen alliance

Japan’s parliament approved a new five-year, $8.6 billion deal with the United States for hosting American troops on the island nation’s soil.

Under the agreement, Japan’s government would spend 1.05 trillion yen through March 2027 to cover joint military exercises and expenses needed to run facilities used by the U.S. forces and the Japanese personnel who work on American bases in the country, The Associated Press reported.

The budget also includes a new funding category of up to 20 billion yen, or $164 million, to buy advanced virtual combat training systems to be used in joint exercises between the U.S. and Japanese militaries.

The close alliance with Japan is viewed as especially vital in countering China’s ambitions, whether militarily in the Indo-Pacific or its economic coercion in the region and globally.