菅政権、ＮＳＣを初開催　米移行期の安保空白を警戒

　政府は１９日、菅政権の発足後初めて、国家安全保障会議（ＮＳＣ）の４大臣会合を首相官邸で開いた。北朝鮮や中国の動向を含む最新の地域情勢について協議。米大統領選でトランプ大統領が敗北を認めず、政権移行手続きが滞るなど不安定な状況が続く中、日本周辺の安全保障に空白を生まないよう万全を期すのが狙いだ。
　米大統領選後、北朝鮮は軍事挑発再開の兆候など「いろいろな動きを見せている」（政府関係者）という。中国も沖縄県・尖閣諸島周辺の領海侵入を繰り返すなど示威行為を続けている。
　こうした状況を踏まえ、政府は友好国との安全保障協力を強化し、抑止力維持に努める方針だ。（2020/11/19-19:47）

The Japanese government's National Security Council on Thursday held the first meeting of four key ministers since the launch of the administration of Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga in September.
   Participants discussed latest developments in North Korea, China and other parts of the world. The four-minister meeting was aimed at making sure that there will be no vacuum in the security situation around Japan as U.S. President Donald Trump has refused to concede his defeat in the presidential election, leading the transition of power in the United States to be stalled.
   After the U.S. presidential election, North Korea is showing various moves, such as signs of resuming military provocations, a Japanese government source said. China is also continuing assertive moves, such as having its coast guard ships repeatedly intrude into Japanese territorial waters around the Senkaku Islands in the East China Sea.
   Under the circumstances, Japan hopes to strengthen its security cooperation with its allies in order to maintain deterrence capabilities.
   On Nov. 12, Suga held telephone talks with Joe Biden, who is certain to have won the presidential election. In the talks, Biden confirmed that the Japan-U.S. security treaty's Article 5, which obliges the United States to defend territories under Japanese jurisdiction, applies to the Senkaku Islands. The islands are claimed by China, which calls them Diaoyu.