Sep 23, 2025 03:08 AM
Why has Japan deployed fighter jets to NATO bases in the US, Canada, and Europe?
https://www.atlanticcouncil.org/blogs/ne...nd-europe/
INTRO: The “Atlantic Eagles” have landed. Starting last week and running through October 1, Japan deployed four F-15 fighter jets and four additional military aircraft, along with nearly two hundred personnel, to visit military bases in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, and Germany. Operation Atlantic Eagles marks the first time ever that Japan Air Self-Defense Force aircraft will have been to Canada or Europe.
Ahead of the operation, Japanese Defense Minister Gen Nakatani said that the deployment embodies a “recognition that the security of the Euro-Atlantic region and that of the Indo-Pacific region are inseparable and interrelated.” Below, Atlantic Council experts answer four pressing questions about why Tokyo is making this move now and what to expect next in Japan-NATO relations.
1. Why has Japan deployed these jets now?
In recent years, Japan and NATO countries have worked to strengthen their defense relations. This has helped Tokyo and NATO members promote mutual understanding, coordination, and cooperation to deal with security issues in the Euro-Atlantic and Indo-Pacific regions.
Against this backdrop, the “Atlantic Eagles” mission—which involves the deployment of the Japan Air Self-Defense Force’s F-15, C-2, KC-767, and KC-46A to the United States, Canada, Britain, and Germany, is essentially about demonstrating Japan’s commitment to working closely with its NATO partners, but it also demonstrates Tokyo’s efforts to play a greater role in global security.
2. Are there other recent actions by Japan that point to a shift in how it views its security?
Japan has been working to expand and deepen security cooperation via various channels, not only with the United States and its allies and likeminded states, but also with other vital partners in Southeast Asia, in South Asia, and among the Pacific Island states. These efforts are part of Japan’s One Cooperative Effort Among Nations (OCEAN) concept, which is aimed at achieving and sustaining a free and open Indo-Pacific.
Of course, the efforts also allow the Japan Self-Defense Force and Japan Coast Guard to gain important operational experience. Japan’s cooperation and coordination with various partners reflects Tokyo’s recognition that a proactive international role is vital to stabilizing the region and ensuring its own national security.
3. What does Japan’s deployment mean for NATO allies?
Amid heightened military and economic threats posed by the axis of aggressors (China, Russia, and North Korea), likeminded nations of the Euro-Atlantic and Indo-Pacific are bolstering their security cooperation. Japan, despite being a traditionally pacifist country with a “no war” clause in its constitution, has dramatically increased its defense spending every year following Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022... (MORE - details)
https://www.atlanticcouncil.org/blogs/ne...nd-europe/
INTRO: The “Atlantic Eagles” have landed. Starting last week and running through October 1, Japan deployed four F-15 fighter jets and four additional military aircraft, along with nearly two hundred personnel, to visit military bases in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, and Germany. Operation Atlantic Eagles marks the first time ever that Japan Air Self-Defense Force aircraft will have been to Canada or Europe.
Ahead of the operation, Japanese Defense Minister Gen Nakatani said that the deployment embodies a “recognition that the security of the Euro-Atlantic region and that of the Indo-Pacific region are inseparable and interrelated.” Below, Atlantic Council experts answer four pressing questions about why Tokyo is making this move now and what to expect next in Japan-NATO relations.
1. Why has Japan deployed these jets now?
In recent years, Japan and NATO countries have worked to strengthen their defense relations. This has helped Tokyo and NATO members promote mutual understanding, coordination, and cooperation to deal with security issues in the Euro-Atlantic and Indo-Pacific regions.
Against this backdrop, the “Atlantic Eagles” mission—which involves the deployment of the Japan Air Self-Defense Force’s F-15, C-2, KC-767, and KC-46A to the United States, Canada, Britain, and Germany, is essentially about demonstrating Japan’s commitment to working closely with its NATO partners, but it also demonstrates Tokyo’s efforts to play a greater role in global security.
2. Are there other recent actions by Japan that point to a shift in how it views its security?
Japan has been working to expand and deepen security cooperation via various channels, not only with the United States and its allies and likeminded states, but also with other vital partners in Southeast Asia, in South Asia, and among the Pacific Island states. These efforts are part of Japan’s One Cooperative Effort Among Nations (OCEAN) concept, which is aimed at achieving and sustaining a free and open Indo-Pacific.
Of course, the efforts also allow the Japan Self-Defense Force and Japan Coast Guard to gain important operational experience. Japan’s cooperation and coordination with various partners reflects Tokyo’s recognition that a proactive international role is vital to stabilizing the region and ensuring its own national security.
3. What does Japan’s deployment mean for NATO allies?
Amid heightened military and economic threats posed by the axis of aggressors (China, Russia, and North Korea), likeminded nations of the Euro-Atlantic and Indo-Pacific are bolstering their security cooperation. Japan, despite being a traditionally pacifist country with a “no war” clause in its constitution, has dramatically increased its defense spending every year following Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022... (MORE - details)