The national flags of Japan and the United States are seen in this file photo. (Mainichi)

       TOKYO (Kyodo) -- The Japanese and U.S. foreign and defense ministers will hold online security talks Friday morning Japan time, the Japanese government said Wednesday.

       In the virtual "two-plus-two" meeting, the four ministers are expected to discuss security challenges and how they can strengthen the deterrence and response capability of the bilateral alliance, the Japanese Foreign Ministry said, amid China's growing military clout in the region.

       The teleconference will be the first security talks involving the two countries' foreign and defense ministers since Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida assumed office in early October and Foreign Minister Yoshimasa Hayashi took up his post in early November. The two-plus-two talks were last held in person in Tokyo in March 2021.

       Hayashi, Japanese Defense Minister Nobuo Kishi and their U.S. counterparts Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin are expected to participate.

       The four ministers were initially planning to meet in person in Washington on Friday, but a rapid spread of the Omicron variant of the novel coronavirus in the United States has forced them to switch to a virtual format, Japanese government officials said.

       New U.S. Ambassador to Japan Rahm Emanuel, a former White House chief of staff who was approved as envoy by the Senate last month, will also join the online talks, according to the U.S. State Department.

       Austin said Sunday he had tested positive for the coronavirus, but his symptoms were mild and he could participate in the online talks, the Japanese officials said.

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