Just 500 Miles Apart, Japan Holds Drills With Russia, US
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Japan will today begin exercises with the U.S. Army on its northernmost island of Hokkaido, a day after it started naval maneuvers with Russia 500 miles (800 kilometers) away off the coast of Vladivostok.
The drills illustrate the balance Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe must strike between his attempts to mend relations with Russia and the need to bolster his country’s alliance with the U.S. as a backstop to a more assertive China in the region.