Japan, U.S.: A New Government and the Defense Relationship

The U.S. secretary of defense has arrived in Japan for talks on North Korea and the status of the U.S.-Japan defense relationship. The visit serves as a way to gauge the temperature of ties since the Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ) took power. While the new DPJ government is far from abandoning defense ties with Washington, it is seeking to assert Japan's interests more strongly.