Italy Strengthens Ties with Japan as Carrier Arrives in the Indo-Pacific
Last week, Italy announced the deployment of its 27,100-ton flagship, the Aircraft Carrier Cavour to the Indo-Pacific. Armed with a complement of up to 10 advanced F-35B stealth fighters the vessel’s arrival in the region represents Italian endeavors to forge security and political ties with Japan.
The emergence of these close ties between Rome and Tokyo occurred at the G7 meeting in mid-June. On the sidelines of the summit hosted by Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni a one-on-one meeting would occur with Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida. From this meeting, Kishida emphasized the need for multinational cooperation in the Indo-Pacific region, to ensure peace and stability.
At its current pace, Cavour will make port in Japan in August. From there the vessel will participate in joint military exercises with units from Japan’s Self-Defense Forces. This will be alongside detachments of German, Spanish, and French air forces taking part in July exercises. Last December a similar British carrier strike group visited Japan.
Italy’s sudden engagement in the Indo-Pacific isn’t newly found. The result of this convergence of interests has brewed over the last few years. Italy’s recent choice to forgo China’s Belt and Road Initiative likely sparked anger and the deterioration of relations. This alongside the war in Ukraine has increasingly solidified Italy’s position with NATO and the US. Meanwhile, for Japan, the Ukraine War and the unforgotten Trump presidency have created anxiety regarding regional tensions. The result has been more diplomatic hedging towards Europe, to forgo reliance on the United States. Already this can be seen in ventures such as the joint development of a fifth-generation fighter between Italy, Japan, and the UK.
While Italy is likely to remain passive so as not to antagonize China, forgoing issues such as the South China Sea, it is undeniable they will become a more common face in Asia. The opportunity Japan’s market offers for Italian defense firms, combined with a collective interest to uphold the rules-based world order will only strengthen these states’ ties.