US strategic command chief visits Tokyo to discuss nuclear deterrence

General Anthony Cotton, who leads the U.S. Strategic Command, arrived in Tokyo on Friday for his first visit to the region since taking office last December.

Cotton is in charge of America’s nuclear triad, which comprises land-based intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs), submarines armed with ballistic missiles (SSBNs) deployed at sea, and strategic bombers operating in the air.

On Friday morning, Cotton touched down at Yokota Air Base in western Tokyo after flying in from South Korea.

During his stay, he is scheduled to meet with General Yoshihide Yoshida, the highest-ranking officer in Japan’s Self-Defense Forces. Additionally, he has plans to visit the prime minister’s office and the Foreign Ministry.

The primary objective of his visit is to provide reassurance to a crucial ally regarding America’s extended deterrence, commonly referred to as the “nuclear umbrella.”

Earlier this year, Cotton informed the U.S. Congress that China has now surpassed the United States in the number of land-based fixed and mobile ICBM launchers.

He highlighted China’s recent construction of hundreds of new ICBM silos, a move inconsistent with Beijing’s longstanding claim of maintaining a “minimum” deterrence strategy.

General Yoshida of the Self-Defense Forces recently stated in an interview with Nikkei that Japan’s security cannot be adequately maintained with its current military posture.

He emphasized the need for Japan to significantly bolster its defensive capabilities while continuing to rely on extended deterrence from the United States.

Cotton’s visit follows rare demonstrations of American nuclear capabilities in the Indo-Pacific region.

In July, the USS Kentucky, an Ohio-class nuclear ballistic missile submarine (SSBN), made a historic port call in Busan, South Korea, marking the first SSBN visit in four decades. This visit was part of the Washington Declaration signed by U.S. President Joe Biden and South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol in April, where they committed to increasing the presence of strategic assets on the Korean Peninsula.

On Friday, the U.S. Pacific Fleet shared photos of USS Kentucky in Guam, indicating its continued presence in the western Pacific region.

In April, senior leaders from the Japanese Maritime Self-Defense Force and the South Korean navy were invited aboard the USS Maine, another SSBN, in Guam. This trilateral embarkation on an SSBN at sea was a significant milestone.

During a roundtable discussion with journalists in Omaha, Nebraska, last month, Cotton emphasized that the SSBN visits to Busan and Guam showcased the “global reach” of U.S. extended deterrence.