Kishida plans to call for countries to cooperate in dealing with Russia, which recently invaded Ukraine, and China, which is strengthening its maritime expansion in the East and South China Seas.

Kishida will make a final decision based on the schedule of the current Diet session, which ends on June 15. If the prime minister attends the conference, he will be the first Japanese leader to participate since former prime minister Shinzo Abe in 2014.

The conference will be held from June 10-12 and is hosted by the International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS), a UK-based think tank. Defence ministers from the US, Europe and Asian countries will discuss security policies.

Regarding the invasion of Ukraine, the prime minister has insisted that Europe and the Indo-Pacific cannot be separated in terms of security. He aligns himself with the US and Europe on economic sanctions against Russia and other issues.

In addition to developments in Russia and China, North Korea has repeatedly launched ballistic missiles, making the security environment in East Asia increasingly severe.

Kishida aims to confirm the unity with other nations, recognising that the countries will not allow the status quo to be unilaterally changed by force.

The meeting will also promote an understanding of Japan’s efforts to strengthen its defence capabilities in preparation for the revision of the National Security Strategy and other documents by the end of this year.

Defense Minister Nobuo Kishi will also explore participation in the Singapore conference.

In April, the Liberal Democratic Party proposed increasing defence spending by 2% or more of gross domestic product within five years.

It advocated the possession of a “counterattack capability”, to strike missile launching sites and other targets, which was previously known as “enemy base attack capability”.