10 January 2017, 15:03 GMT
TOKYO (Sputnik) – Japan hopes for frank exchange of views and discussion of efforts to boost US-Japanese cooperation with US Secretary of Defense James Mattis during his first official visit to the country, Japanese Defense Minister Tomomi Inada said Friday.
"We expect to strengthen the deterrent force of the US-Japanese alliance as well as to carry out a candid exchange of views on the existing problems … I want to talk about strengthening the alliance with the United States," Inada said at a press conference.
The minister added that she wanted to discuss cooperation between Japan, the United States and South Korea.
Inada also hinted that the deployment of US Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) system was likely to be discussed during the upcoming talks with Mattis in the light of the increasing North Korean missile threat.
Mattis started his two-day working visit to Japan earlier in the day.
