EU welcomes more active Japanese security role

Does anyone care what the EU thinks anymore? totally decrepit and discredited organisation. and their foreign policy forays have all been disastrous.

The EU has been long gone from having any creditable policies or opinions , second only to the UN which has totally lost the plot .

EU will be crisis watching the new allround JP. Welcome to global hardball.

The EU and the UN have over stayed their welcome. The are ineffective and only cause trouble.

NATO has a purpose.

I hear that many in the USA wishes to waive "good bye" to the UN. They should be moved to Jeruslem. That would put them at least at some place that requires work . Wonder how many countries would want to move there?

Imanishi.

Which countries make up the NATO forces, any EU/UN nations part of it?

When were NATO forces last deployed?

Mrs Mogherini is a product of EU horse trading, an irelevent unelected bureaucratic, principally a reject politican that comes over as insincere and patronising.

"China and several Asian countries harbor deep distrust of Japan "

Who, apart from China (PRC) and South Korea? Japan's have been welcomed by other Asian nations as well as the U.S., Australia and now EU.

China and several Asian countries harbor deep distrust of Japan in light of its brutal World War II record

AFP never fails to include WWII, but the real reason of China/SK distrust of Japan is their political agendas.

Interpretation of EU "Just give us the money but stay out of the decision makings."

Attention!-Japan has more than enough on it's domestic plate & is standing well enough on it's own. The E.U. has gone from a noble gesture into a fools errand!

@Cocomut: Japan is excluded from decision making committee for years/ Just get out from UN to save money.

@toshiko: Thank you for the info. You're right. It's a hefty price for "looking good" in the eyes of the world.

Now that the power balance of the world has changed, I think Japan needs to strengthen the nation's defenses. In addition, since I heard that the number of self defense forces is quite lower than other countries, I partly agree with Abe's policies so that Japan can stand on its own two feet...

But on the other hand, I have a mixed feeling when he visits Yasukuni, actually...