Suga's first trip points to Japan interest in SE Asia

HANOI/TOKYO－Yoshihide Suga, in his first overseas trip as Japanese prime minister, agreed with his Vietnamese counterpart to step up military and security cooperation.

In talks in Hanoi on Monday, Suga and Nguyen Xuan Phuc struck a basic agreement allowing Japan to export military equipment and technology to Vietnam. Japan has been pursuing such agreements in recent years to bolster ties with Southeast Asia and sustain its own industry on military supplies.

Suga arrived in Hanoi late on Sunday. He said his four-day trip to Vietnam and later Indonesia is key to pursuing the "free and open Indo-Pacific" vision for multilateral economic and security cooperation.