Japan: Iran war, oil crisis impacting Asia-Pacific

Melbourne: A global oil supply squeeze is inflicting an “enormous impact” on the Asia-Pacific region, Japan's PM Sanae Takaichi said on Monday. Speaking in Canbe­r­ra after talks with her Aus­tra­li­an counterpart Anthony Albanese, she said the two countries would respond urg­e­ntly to secure stable energy supplies. “The effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz has been inflicting enormous impact on the Indo-Pacific,” she said on Monday.

“We affirmed that Japan and Australia will closely communicate with each other in responding with a sense of urgency.” The two nations aim to strengthen autonomy and resilience to secure stable sup­plies of energy, she said.

Australia is the biggest supplier of LPG to Japan, which in turn is a source for about 7% of Australia’s diesel.

The two countries issued a string of statements vowing to work together on energy, the economy, defence, and critical minerals. Japan’s government has said it is also keen to ensure a stable supply of critical minerals, essential for semiconductors, EV batteries and weapons systems. 

Australia has touted its abundant critical minerals as a way to loosen China's grip over global supplies of rare earths.

–Agencies