TOKYO -- Japan's top naval officer has visited a Western Australian port that may become one of the most strategically important hubs in the Indo-Pacific region, part of a steady increase of nuclear-powered submarines operating in waters off the country's western shores.
Adm. Ryo Sakai, chief of staff of the Japanese Maritime Self-Defense Force, made the trip to HMAS Stirling, a Royal Navy base facing the Indian Ocean, during a six-day trip to Australia last week.
