By Zac de Silva in Canberra

Japan’s prime minister will leave Canberra having secured new deals spanning defence, critical minerals and energy supplies during talks with her Australian counterpart.

In a meeting overshadowed by the war in the Middle East and China’s growing assertiveness in the Indo-Pacific, Sanae Takaichi and Anthony Albanese have agreed to strengthen economic and military ties between the two nations.

The pair have outlined a list of six Australian gallium, magnesium, fluorite, nickel, cobalt and other rare earths projects that Japan is keen to invest in as it seeks to diversify its metals supply chain away from China.

Trade Minister Don Farrell said he would travel to Japan in two weeks to put some “flesh on the bone” of the agreements after the leaders met in Canberra.

“Japan is a very big investor … in our critical minerals projects, and we want that to continue and, in fact, to grow,” he told Sky News on Monday.

The mining deal was incremental but showed some progress towards greater Japanese involvement in Australian projects, Australia-Japan Research Centre director Shiro Armstrong told AAP.

“It does signal some more state support towards this industry from the Japanese side,” he said.

Ms Takaichi is scheduled to leave Australia on Tuesday morning.

During the diplomatic talks in the nation’s capital, the leaders also agreed to consult on “economic security contingencies and consider ways to mitigate risks”.

While Ms Takaichi has become a more strident critic of China’s behaviour in the region than her predecessors, the joint statement wasn’t aimed at any one country, Professor Armstrong said.

“China is a big factor in the region, but so is the United States,” he said.

“Economic coercion is becoming increasingly a reality, and it’s not just from one country.”

Opposition industry spokesman Andrew Hastie said it was important to build ties with countries such as Japan as military tensions rose in the Indo-Pacific.

“We’re not going to criticise our government for building partnerships with important Asian nations,” he told ABC News on Monday afternoon.

“It’s really important that Australia is at the table of nations.”

During her trip, Ms Takaichi laid a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier at the Australian War Memorial and visited Governor-General Sam Mostyn.