Japan, U.S. to discuss strengthening cyber-security

Japan and the United States will discuss strengthening defenses against cyberattacks, reports said Monday, as Tokyo looks to play a more active role in global security.

At talks in Japan later this week, the foreign and defense ministers from both countries will undertake their first review for 15 years of how their security alliance operates.

Measures to counter cyberattacks will be high on the agenda, the Yomiuri Shimbun said.

The Sankei Shimbun carried a similar story, adding "cooperation in space will be another important issue".

The U.S. is particularly concerned about the threat from cyberattacks, which it has said largely emanate from China.

China insists it is also the victim of hacking and points to accusations made by U.S. intelligence leaker Edward Snowden, who said US spies had worked their way into the billion-plus nation's Internet network.

U.S. Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel and Secretary of State John Kelly will meet their Japanese counterparts Itsunori Onodera and Fumio Kishida on Thursday.

They will renew overall operational arrangements for the Tokyo-Washington alliance which were last amended in 1997, officials have said.

The so-called "2+2" meeting "will take up a wide range of issues over Japan-U.S. defense cooperation as the security environment surrounding Japan is increasingly severe", Onodera said Friday.

© (C) 2013 AFP