By Harry Kazianis
On Monday, Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel and Japanese Minister of Defense Itsunori Onodera met in Washington D.C.
Their discussions touched on what they described as a "full range of issues facing the U.S.-Japan alliance." This included hot topics such as "North Korea's destabilizing behavior, threats to maritime security, and our shared efforts to enhance our defense posture and capabilities to respond to the 21st century challenges."
And, of course, challenges in the East China Sea were specifically mentioned. For his part, Secretary Hagel once again restated the U.S. position in no uncertain terms: "In our discussion today, I reiterated the principles that govern longstanding U.S. policy on the Senkaku Islands. The United States does not take a position on the ultimate sovereignty of the islands, but we do recognize they are under the administration of Japan and fall under our security treaty obligations."
Hagel also added, "Any actions that could raise tensions or lead to miscalculations affect the stability of the entire region. Therefore, the United States opposes any unilateral or coercive action that seeks to undermine Japan's administrative control, a message General Dempsey conveyed to his counterparts last week in Beijing. "
Read the full story at The Diplomat