Japan and US Likely to Begin Cost-Sharing Talks for US Forces in Japan After September... Nikkei: "US Naval Maintenance Costs Emerge"

Japanese Government Considers Starting Negotiations After House of Councillors Election

The Nihon Keizai Shimbun (Nikkei) reported on May 4 that the Japanese government expects to begin Japan-US negotiations on the cost-sharing for stationing US forces in Japan after the House of Councillors (Upper House) election, which is scheduled for September.

According to Nikkei, the Japanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Ministry of Defense anticipate that negotiations over the cost-sharing for US forces stationed in Japan will be initiated during the bilateral Foreign and Defense Ministers' (2+2) meeting. The negotiations are most likely to take place after September.

The cost-sharing for US forces stationed in Japan, referred to by Japan as the "sympathy budget," is determined by a special agreement between the two countries every five years. Under the current agreement, which covers fiscal years 2022 to 2026, Japan's total contribution is 1.0551 trillion yen (approximately 10.4756 trillion won), averaging about 211 billion yen per year.

Nikkei reported that although US President Donald Trump has expressed dissatisfaction with the level of Japan's defense spending, security issues were not included as an agenda item in the Japan-US tariff negotiations, and senior officials from the Ministry of Defense did not accompany the two rounds of ministerial negotiations.

However, the newspaper added that, contrary to the Japanese government's expectations, it remains uncertain whether security issues can be completely separated from the tariff negotiations. US Navy Secretary John Phelan is calling for Japanese companies to invest in the US shipbuilding industry.

Nikkei also reported that during the negotiation of the current agreement, Japan increased its contribution by adding the cost of procuring equipment used in joint Japan-US military exercises to the cost-sharing. This time, the idea of including the cost of maintaining US naval vessels in Japan as part of the stationing expenses is emerging as a possible measure to increase the budget.