USJapan Alliance Critical to Deterring Chinese Military, Hegseth Says

War Secretary Pete Hegseth attends a meeting of the Ukraine Defense Contact Group after a meeting of NATO defense ministers at the alliance’s headquarters in Brussels on Oct. 15, 2025. Yves Herman/ReutersU.S. Secretary of War Pete Hegseth said on Oct. 29 during a meeting with his Japanese counterpart, Shinjiro Koizumi, that the U.S.–Japan alliance is critical to deterring “Chinese military aggression.”The two defense ministers held talks in Tokyo just a day after U.S. President Donald Trump met with Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi and both countries signed an agreement to implement a “New Golden Age” for the U.S.–Japan alliance and secure rare-earth metals and critical minerals.