Japan has expanded its Mobile Cooperation Team (MCT) initiative to the Pacific Islands region, dispatching units to the Marshall Islands and Micronesia for training and assistance.
The program, which was first established in 2017 to strengthen the coastguards of Southeast Asian nations facing threats from China’s presence in the South China Sea, aims to enhance regional capacity in search and rescue, law enforcement, and oil spill prevention.
The recent missions involved exercises to locate and rescue small groups of people adrift at sea, as well as lectures on international law for over 60 local officials.
According to Masafumi Iida, a leading China analyst at the National Institute of Defense Studies in Tokyo, Japan’s expansion of the MCT is a response to China’s growing influence in the Pacific Islands.
Since its inception, the Mobile Cooperation Teams have provided assistance on 105 missions to 20 countries, offering advice on stop-and-search operations, arrest techniques, and methods to prevent oil spills from worsening.
In addition to training and capacity-building, Japan has also provided patrol vessels to Pacific nations and offered lectures on international maritime law.
Experts believe that Japan’s assistance could help prevent the Pacific Islands states from falling under China’s influence and ensure the security of shipping routes across the Pacific.
