Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese is hosting Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi for talks on energy and critical minerals – Copyright AFP Saeed Khan
Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi opened talks in Australia on Monday as the two countries seek to navigate a global oil supply squeeze.
Australia is a major supplier of coal and liquefied natural gas to Japan, which in turn is a source of about seven percent of Australia’s oil.
Takaichi held talks with Prime Minister Anthony Albanese before addressing the media together, where energy, critical minerals and defense are expected to be on the agenda.
“Gas plays a role in all our discussions because it fundamentally underpins the shared energy security between our countries,” Foreign Minister Penny Wong told reporters in Canberra ahead of the talks.
“Our export partners have always shown us that they want reliability,” she said.
About a fifth of the world’s oil normally flows through the Strait of Hormuz, where shipping has been blocked by Iran since it was attacked by the United States and Israel.
Japan’s government has said it is also keen to ensure a steady supply of critical minerals essential for semiconductors, electric vehicle batteries and weapons systems.
Australia has promoted its abundant critical minerals as a way to loosen China’s grip on global rare earth supplies.
“We want to make sure we are resilient at a time where we see a lot of economic and global disruption,” Wong said.
“Critical minerals are necessary for our economy.”
Australia and Japan have also strengthened their defense ties, reaching a $US10 billion (US$6 billion) deal last year for Japan to provide Mogami-class warships to the Australian navy.
In a foreign policy speech in Vietnam at the weekend, Takaichi promised to do more to ensure a “free and open Indo-Pacific” – a strategy that has rankled China.
Japan aimed to build its resilience, she said, particularly by strengthening its supply chains for energy and critical minerals and increasing security cooperation.
First articulated a decade ago by Takaichi’s mentor Shinzo Abe, the idea of a “free and open” Indo-Pacific has since been embraced by many US partners and allies seeking to curb China’s influence in the region.
