Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga is arranging to participate in a major security forum to be held in Singapore next month, government sources said Tuesday, as Japan cooperates with like-minded countries to counter China's growing military influence in the region.
Suga, who would be the first Japanese leader in seven years to attend the Shangri-La Dialogue, is slated to give a keynote speech, the sources said.
During the June 4-5 gathering, sponsored by British think tank the International Institute for Strategic Studies, Suga is expected to call for a free and open Indo-Pacific region, a vision promoted by Japan and the United States as China increases its maritime assertiveness in the East and South China seas.