Japanese defense minister Toshimi Kitazawa (2nd, right) inspects an honour guard with his South Korean counterpart Kim Kwan-jin (1st, right) during a welcome ceremony at the Ministry of National Defense in Seoul, South Korea, Jan. 10, 2011. Defense chiefs of South Korea and Japan were set to hold talks later Monday in Seoul over better bilateral military ties and a possibility of signing defense pacts in the face of lingering security concerns in the region. [Park Jin Hee/Xinhua]