CNN reports that “Secretary of Defense Ash Carter arrived in Japan Monday, a visit that comes amid fears that President-elect Donald Trump might pivot away from the decades-long US-Japan security alliance and heightened concern over the North Korean threat.”

“‘Our alliance with Japan has never been stronger,” Carter told reporters while en route to Yokota Air Base near Tokyo.”

“‘This is a two-way street, we provide enhanced security to one another,’ he added, saying he was ‘satisfied’ with Japan’s contributions to the alliance.”