日豪、円滑化協定に署名　対中念頭に防衛協力強化

　岸田文雄首相とオーストラリアのモリソン首相は６日午後、テレビ電話形式の会談に先立ち、自衛隊と豪軍の相手国訪問時の法的地位を定めた円滑化協定に署名した。インド太平洋地域での中国の覇権主義的な動向を念頭に、防衛協力を強化する狙いがある。
　円滑化協定は、日米安全保障条約に基づく在日米軍の地位協定に相当。「準同盟国」と位置付ける豪州との締結が初のケースとなる。日本側はこれを先例とし、同志国との協力を加速させたい考えだ。（2022/01/06-13:23）

Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and his Australian counterpart, Scott Morrison, signed on Thursday an agreement stipulating the legal status of Japanese Self-Defense Forces personnel and Australian troops while in each other's territories.
   Kishida and Morrison signed the Reciprocal Access Agreement ahead of their videoconference the same day.
   The pact is aimed at strengthening security cooperation between Japan and Australia amid China's growing hegemonic moves in the Indo-Pacific region.
   The deal is the equivalent of the Japan-U.S. Status of Forces Agreement, which governs U.S. troops stationed in Japan, under the bilateral security treaty.
   It is the first time for Japan to conclude an RAA, which applies to both the SDF and a foreign country's military. Japan hopes that the agreement with Australia, regarded by the Japanese government as a quasi-ally, will serve as a precedent and help accelerate similar cooperation with other like-minded countries.