Defense Dialogue by Minister Kono After assuming the office of the Minister of Defense, Minister Kono actively held meetings with his counterparts and visited foreign countries. Defense cooperation and exchanges with foreign countries were stepped up to an unprecedented extent in FY2019. Bilateral Dialogues with Many Countries Japan-India “2+2” (November 2019) Japan-China Defense Ministerial Meeting (December 2019) A number of bilateral dialogues were held, including the first ministerial-level “2+2” meeting with India, the first Defense Ministerial Meeting with Ukraine, and the Japan-China Defense Ministerial Meeting held during the first official visit to China as a Japanese Minister of Defense in ten years. Russia Denmark U.K. Germany Ukraine France Bulgaria Italy Turkey Jordan Iran Israel Egypt Saudi Arabia Canada Mongolia China United States Republic of Korea Bahrain Qatar India Myanmar Vietnam Oman Thailand Laos UAE Philippines Cambodia Djibouti Sri Lanka Brunei Malaysia Singapore Indonesia Jamaica Papua New Guinea Brazil Fiji Tonga Australia 5 or more exchanges New Zealand 3 or more exchanges 2 exchanges 1 exchange No exchange Number of bilateral dialogues and consultations (April 1, 2019-March 31, 2020) Active Utilization of Telephone Conversation Active Participation in Multilateral Conferences Manama Dialogue (November 2019) The ADMM-Plus (November 2019) Minister Kono has been more proactive in holding telephone conversations than ever and has endeavored to deepen communications with other countries. In FY2019, telephone conversations took place with as many as 12 countries. Doha Forum (December 2019) Minister Kono participated in the Manama Dialogue and the Doha Forum for the first time as a Japanese Minister of Defense, and also attended the Munich Security Conference for the first time in 11 years, highlighting the presence and the position of the government of Japan to the international community. On the occasion of the ADMM-Plus, Minister Kono introduced the Vientiane Vision 2.0, an updated guideline for Japan-ASEAN defense cooperation, which had been announced at the Japan-ASEAN Defense Ministers’ Meeting, thereby further deepening defense cooperation between Japan and ASEAN member countries. Defense of Japan 10