The White House confirmed Tuesday that Japan’s Prime Minister Fumio Kishida will visit Washington on January 13, where he will meet with U.S. President Joe Biden, as had been announced by some Japanese media.
White House spokeswoman Karine Jean-Pierre announced that Biden «looks forward to welcoming» the Japanese Prime Minister, in what will be the first summit between the two countries in the U.S. presidential office since Kishida took office.
Jean-Pierre explained that this meeting seeks to «further deepen the ties between our governments, economies and our people,» according to a statement.
Biden and Kishida will «draw inspiration» from their past efforts, such as the «close collaboration to modernize» bilateral relations or expand cooperation on issues such as climate change or the commitment to «a free and open Indo-Pacific».
They will also discuss «a variety of regional and global issues», among which the White House highlights tensions over North Korean military programs, the war in Ukraine or stability in the Taiwan Strait.
The US president «will reiterate his full support for Japan’s National Security Strategy», which represents a historic shift in national policy limited to national «self-defense» by enabling Japanese forces to launch counterattacks outside its borders, and which has been criticized by the opposition and parts of society.
The substantial increase in defense spending, which Kishida plans to explain to Biden, also seeks to deepen the alliance between the countries, government sources told ‘Yomiuri Shumbun’.
Source: (EUROPA PRESS)
