Australia-Japan Foreign and Defence Ministerial 2+2 Meeting

Australia will host the sixth Australia-Japan Foreign and Defence Ministerial (2+2) Consultations in Sydney on 22 November.

We look forward to welcoming our Japanese counterparts, the Minister for Foreign Affairs, Mr Fumio Kishida, and the Minister for Defence, Mr Gen Nakatani, for discussions on strengthening this important strategic partnership.

Australia and Japan share common values and interests, and a commitment to supporting peace and security in our region and beyond.

Our discussions will focus on promoting Australia and Japan's defence and security relationship, which has seen unprecedented levels of cooperation over the past 18 months.

We will consider proposals to further strengthen practical defence cooperation, including on cyber, strategic planning and defence training. We will share assessments on the region's strategic environment and explore ways to increase our collaboration on shared concerns, including countering terrorism.

Japan is Australia's second-largest trading partner and second-largest export market, as well as our third largest source of foreign direct investment.

The Australia-Japan Economic Partnership Agreement (JAEPA) and recent conclusion of the Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement (TPP) signal the growing value and dynamism of our economic partnership.

We are working together through the East Asia Summit, APEC, the ASEAN Regional Forum, the G20 and the New Colombo Plan to promote global and regional growth and stability.