Royal Navy: Army soldiers deployed to Japan for major exercise in wake of HMS Prince of Wales arrival

Some 100 UK soldiers have been deployed to the island of Kyushu as part of Exercise Vigilant Isles. Personnel will take part in a joint drill programme aimed at improving military teamwork between the two island nations.

Later in 2025, the UK’s Carrier Strike Group will visit Japan as part of a deployment to the Indo-Pacific - with HMS Prince of Wales taking charge of the operation. The formation will work alongside Japanese forces and other allied nations to patrol the region.

Prime minister Sir Keir Starmer previously called for more patrols in the area to combat the influence of China, with Lord Vernon Coaker stating the 65,000 tonne warship’s mission will “assert the rule of law” over Beijing. Defence Secretary John Healey met his Japanese counterpart, Gen Nakatani, in London, where they discussed the Global Combat Air Programme (GCAP).

This will see Japan, the UK and Italy work together to build next-generation fighter jets. Mr Healey said at the meeting: “With increasing instability across the world, it is more important than ever that we strengthen co-operation with our international partners like Japan.”

He added: “Today, Minister Nakatani and I have highlighted the positive progress being made on our important next-generation fighter jet programme, to strengthen our security co-operation. There are many miles between our two nations, but the UK and Japan stand closer together than ever in support of peace and security across the globe.”

Reading will play host to GCAP headquarters, the Ministry of Defence has said, with the aim of providing jobs and boosting economic growth in the Berkshire town and across the UK. More than 3,500 people are working on the fighter jet programme across the UK, including engineers and programmers. Exercise Vigilant Isles – now in its third year – is a unique joint training programme, because Britain is the only European nation to conduct such a scheme on Japanese soil.

Western powers have grown increasingly anxious about the Indo-Pacific in recent years, as China seeks to strengthen its ties with nations across the Indian and Pacific Oceans. Critics of the British Government’s proposed deal to hand control of the Chagos Islands to Mauritius fear it will risk US and UK influence in the Indian Ocean, because it could jeopardise the joint military base on the island of Diego Garcia.