U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth poses for a photo with Defense Minister Shinjiro Koizumi on the sidelines of an expanded ASEAN defense ministers' summit in Cebu, the Philippines, on Wednesday in this image posted to Hegseth's official X account.

Defense Minister Shinjiro Koizumi met with U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth on the sidelines of an Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) defense chiefs’ summit Wednesday in the Philippines, with the two discussing munitions production and their “deterrence through denial” strategy.

In a sign of the two defense chiefs’ close ties, the talks were their sixth in-person meeting.

Writing on X, Hegseth said the talks had focused on advancing a “shared vision of peace through strength.” 

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