TOKYO (Kyodo) -- Japan and Indonesia agreed Monday in their "two-plus-two" foreign and defense ministerial talks to bolster maritime security cooperation, amid China's increasing assertiveness in nearby waters.

Japanese Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi and Defense Minister Shinjiro Koizumi also confirmed with their Indonesian counterparts, Sugiono and Sjafrie Sjamsoeddin, the importance of complying with international law.

Motegi voiced Japan's "concern over any unilateral attempts to change the status quo by force or coercion" in the South and East China seas while citing an increasingly severe security environment.

"It's important to step up efforts to realize a free and open Indo-Pacific based on the rule of law, and our cooperation has great significance for the region as we are both democracies and maritime nations," he said.

The meeting was the third of its kind between foreign and defense ministers of Japan and Indonesia, with the previous ones held in 2015 and 2021.

Japan hosted the latest gathering in an apparent bid to strengthen relations with the largest economy and most populous member of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, which has also been courted by China.

Indonesia, which has long pursued a foreign policy of nonalignment with any single global power, held its first two-plus-two meeting with China last April.

Japan and Indonesia also agreed to boost cooperation through Japan's official security assistance framework, under which Tokyo provides defense equipment to like-minded countries, while deciding to promote exchanges between their authorities.

"Our cooperative relationship, especially in defense, is very important from a strategic perspective," Sjafrie said. "I'd like to ask for continued deep cooperation. I hope this will produce concrete results."

The two foreign ministers and two defense ministers also met separately the same day.

Koizumi invited Sjafrie to the Maritime Self-Defense Force's base in his hometown of Yokosuka, near Tokyo, where they inspected the latest Mogami-class escort vessel, FFM, and a new Taigei-class submarine.