Oracle Corporation is reportedly leading the race to provide high-security cloud services to Japan, ahead of Amazon Web Services, Microsoft Corporation, and Alphabet Inc.’s Google, for an “air-gapped” cloud service to Japan, reported the Financial Times on Wednesday. The US has long pushed Japan to strengthen its cybersecurity defenses against Chinese hacking, with the need becoming more urgent as Washington seeks deeper US-Japan weapons co-production. Japan has not yet made a final decision on the contract and could still divide the award among multiple providers. U.S. Ambassador to Japan George Glass is leading a working group coordinating with Oracle, its competitors, and the Japanese government. After discussions with Washington and a March call between President Donald Trump and Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi, Japan chose a U.S.-based cloud computing provider. Oracle, founded by Larry Ellison, a prominent Trump ally, became the frontrunner by emphasizing the company’s stronger security features. Oracle reported strong fiscal fourth-quarter results, with revenue rising 21% to $19.2 billion, cloud revenue surging 47%, and its contracted backlog reaching $638 billion.