A Japanese leader will attend a NATO summit for the first time in the country's history.
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said he would attend this summer in light of Russia's invasion of Ukraine.
A Japanese leader will attend a NATO summit for the first time ever in a move prompted by Russia's invasion of Ukraine.
Reuters reported that Kishida would be the first Japanese leader to ever attend a NATO summit.
Kishida also said in his statement that his attendance would be "for the first time as the Prime Minister of Japan.".
Russia's invasion of Ukraine appears to have strengthened NATO: It prompted Finland and Sweden to break with decades of neutrality and apply to join NATO.
It is the opposite of what Russian President Vladimir Putin wanted: He has tried to justify his invasion of Ukraine by arguing that he was simply reacting to the possibility of NATO expanding eastwards. »