
TOKYO -- The U.S. and Japanese governments have begun talks on conducting large-scale joint drills to increase their capability to protect the Senkaku Islands in the East China Sea, Nikkei has learned.
Under the plan, Ground, Maritime and Air Self-Defense Forces would join the U.S. Marines and Air Force in an exercise to defend the Japanese-administered Senkakus, which are claimed by China as Diaoyu.