NATO and Four Asia-Pacific Countries Sign First Joint Document to Strengthen Cooperation

The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) will create its first joint document to expand cooperation with four Indo-Pacific partner countries?Korea, Japan, Australia, and New Zealand?at the summit to be held from the 9th to the 11th.

According to the Nihon Keizai Shimbun (Nikkei) on the 5th, NATO plans to clarify the framework for cooperation with these four Indo-Pacific countries, newly naming them 'IP4' and specifying the cooperative relationship with IP4 in the joint document.

Until now, NATO has referred to these four countries as Asia-Pacific Partners (AP4).

[Image source=Yonhap News]

Through the adoption of the joint document, NATO will also respond to new threats such as cyberattacks and disinformation. Nikkei analyzed that "as the military alliance NATO heightens its vigilance against China's military threats, it aims to strengthen the cooperation framework with Indo-Pacific countries."

Kyodo News also reported that NATO and these four countries have begun coordinating to strengthen cooperation in four areas: disinformation, cyber, support for Ukraine, and emerging technologies.

Additionally, considering the recent series of cyberattacks targeting government agencies and critical infrastructure in each country, opportunities for the four countries to participate in NATO's cyber exercises are expected to increase.

Although Korea, Japan, Australia, and New Zealand are not NATO member states, they have been invited to the NATO summit held in Washington DC as partner countries.

Japanese media reported that Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida is coordinating a meeting among the leaders of the four countries during this summit.