Japanese prime minister to visit Australia in first official visit since taking office

Notably, the Japanese leader has historically been strong on military defence in response to growing Indo-Pacific regional threats from China, North Korea and Russia. Japan is currently increasing defence spending, accelerating defence industry capacity and eased restrictions on export of military equipment.

“I am honoured to welcome Prime Minister Takaichi to Australia for our Annual Leaders’ Meeting where we will continue to work together under our Special Strategic Partnership for the benefit of our people and the region,” Prime Minister Albanese said.

“Fifty years ago, our nations laid the foundation for a partnership based on trust, shared values and mutual respect by signing the Basic Treaty of Friendship and Cooperation.

“Australia and Japan share strong strategic alignment. Our cooperation is essential to maintaining a peaceful, stable and prosperous region.

“Our enduring trade and investment ties underpin our relationship, creating jobs, providing opportunity and delivering economic growth to both our nations.”

The visit to Australia will be the fourth time the leaders have met, with previous meetings last year on the margins of the East Asia Summit in Kuala Lumpur, the APEC Summit in Gyeongju and the G20 Summit in Johannesburg.

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Later this month, the heads of police, military, customs and immigration agencies from across 24 jurisdictions will convene in Brisbane for the eighth annual Joint Heads of Pacific Security (JHoPS) meeting to discuss strategic priorities and advance Pacific-led responses to regional security challenges.

The meeting will reportedly focus on exploring new approaches to strengthening collective action and operational cooperation, through enhanced interoperability between nations.

JHoPS principals will also participate in guided tours of Gallipoli Barracks and Pinkenba Hub where they will explore two Pacific-led deployable capabilities: the Pacific Response Group and the Pacific Police Support Group.

Notably, the Pinkenba Hub that opened in 2024 has already been used to train over 40 police officers from 11 Pacific countries as members of the Pacific Police Support Group.

“JHoPS is a unique opportunity to meet with Pacific partners to develop more rapid and capable frameworks in support of a secure and resilient region,” Chief of Defence Force Admiral David Johnston said.

“I thank our Pacific friends for their participation. This forum provides a key opportunity to advance practical, Pacific-led security cooperation.”

Robert Dougherty

Robert is a senior journalist who has previously worked for Seven West Media in Western Australia, as well as Fairfax Media and Australian Community Media in New South Wales. He has produced national headlines, photography and videography of emergency services, business, community, defence and government news across Australia. Robert graduated with a Bachelor of Arts, Majoring in Public Relations and Journalism at Curtin University, attended student exchange program with Fudan University and holds Tier 1 General Advice certification for Kaplan Professional. Reach out via email at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or via LinkedIn.