Japanese Defense Minister Koizumi Visits Seoul: "Will Work to Deepen South Korea-Japan Defense Cooperation"

Japanese Defense Minister Shinjiro Koizumi has arrived in South Korea to attend a bilateral defense ministerial meeting and other scheduled events.
Minister Koizumi, who arrived in South Korea today (June 27) for a two-day visit, began his schedule by paying his respects at the Seoul National Cemetery in Dongjak-gu, Seoul.
Upon his arrival, he wrote on his social media, "I will work to ensure that today and tomorrow serve as an opportunity to further deepen defense cooperation between South Korea and Japan."

This afternoon, Minister Koizumi is scheduled to visit the Black Eagles, the Republic of Korea Air Force's aerobatic team, stationed in Wonju, Gangwon Province, alongside South Korean Minister of National Defense Ahn Gyu-back.
The Black Eagles received refueling support from the Japan Air Self-Defense Force at Naha Air Base in Okinawa, Japan, while en route to the World Defense Show 2026 held in Saudi Arabia last January.
That event marked the first time the Japan Air Self-Defense Force had provided refueling support to a South Korean Air Force aircraft.
Japanese media reported at the time that the two countries were considering regularizing such refueling support, drawing attention to the joint visit by the two defense ministers to the Black Eagles unit.
The South Korea-Japan defense ministerial meeting will be held tomorrow morning at the Ministry of National Defense headquarters in Seoul.
This meeting comes about a month after the two ministers held bilateral talks on the sidelines of the Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore on May 30.
This marks the first time in 11 years that a Japanese defense minister has visited South Korea specifically for bilateral talks.
Although then-Japanese Defense Minister Gen Nakatani visited South Korea last September to meet with Minister Ahn, that visit was made in the context of attending the 2025 Seoul Defense Dialogue.
(Photo: Yonhap News)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.