The Japanese Ministry of Defense announced that it will, for the first time, dispatch Self-Defense Forces officers to the NATO Security Assistance and Training for Ukraine (NSATU).
It was reported by The Japan Times.
The ministry stated that it will send four officers to NSATU — a command headquartered in Wiesbaden, Germany, which was established in July 2024 to coordinate the planning and organization of security assistance to the war-torn country.
It is noted that the officers will work alongside others to coordinate the provision of equipment and training for the Ukrainian military following russia’s invasion of the neighboring country in February 2022, as well as serve as liaisons with partner nations.
The officers themselves — two from the Ground Self-Defense Force and one each from the Air and Maritime Self-Defense Forces — will not participate in actual combat operations.
"This dispatch will contribute to strengthening Japan’s own defense posture by learning lessons from Ukraine, including those regarding ‘new ways of fighting,’ while also deepening cooperation between Japan and NATO, given that security in the European-Atlantic and Indo-Pacific regions is inextricably linked," the Ministry of Defense said in a statement.
Last month, in an interview with The Japan Times, Japan’s ambassador to NATO stated that Japan’s relations with NATO go beyond broad political dialogue and are taking on more “concrete” forms of cooperation in key strategic and security areas, particularly in supporting Ukraine, coordinating the defense industry, and collaborating on cutting-edge technologies.
Japan, which is already one of the largest donors to NATO’s Trust Fund for Ukraine, supporting initiatives such as medical rehabilitation and demining in the country, is also considering participation in several other initiatives under the Alliance’s auspices.
These include the recently launched Prioritised Ukraine Requirements List (PURL), which allows allies and partners to fund the delivery of US military equipment to Ukraine, as well as the “Defence Innovation Accelerator for the North Atlantic” (DIANA) — NATO’s flagship program in the field of new technologies.
Discussions are also reportedly ongoing regarding joining “Starlift”—a NATO project under which member countries share satellite launch capabilities.
Japan is not a member of NATO but is a key Asian partner that, together with Australia, New Zealand, and South Korea, forms the “Indo-Pacific Four” (IP4) group.
Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi may also become the second Japanese leader to attend a NATO summit. According to reports, NATO countries intend to invite Takaichi and the leaders of the three other IP4 countries to the summit, which will take place July 6–8 in Ankara.
As the Ukrainian News agency earlier reported, in January of this year it was announced that Japan would allocate USD 25 million to Ukraine for humanitarian demining and rehabilitation.
And in February, it was reported that Japan plans to join the NATO initiative to supply Ukraine with US-made ammunition and equipment and will finance the purchase of non-lethal equipment for the Ukrainian Armed Forces.
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