US, Japan Sign Arms Trade Pact: Missile Defense Co-Production & More
"...“DOD has been trying to negotiate a reciprocal agreement with the Japanese for decades, but the big hurdle has been the ‘reciprocal’ part of this: the Japanese being willing to export technology … and the willingness to open up their defense market,” said a Hill staffer. “The implications for two way defense cooperation – particularly in missile defense technology – could be pretty significant.” “If you look at trade data, for aerospace civil imports, they’re one of our largest suppliers; if you look on the defense side, it’s zero,” said Joel Johnson, an analyst at the Teal Group. The Reciprocal Defense Procurement pact could blow that open ..."
Reference: breakingdefense.com .
