WASHINGTON: US President Joe Biden will host Japan’s Prime Minister Fumio Kishida on January 13, the White House announced Tuesday.
“President Biden looks forward to welcoming Prime Minister Kishida Fumio of Japan to the White House on Friday, January 13th to further deepen ties between our governments, economies, and our people,“ the White House said in a statement.
The two leaders will talk about ways to address climate change as well as discuss security issues around North Korea, China and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the statement added.
Biden will renew his support for Japan’s presidency of the G7 and its mandate as a non-permanent member of the UN Security Council, the White House said.
Kishida warned last summer at a summit with Biden in Japan that China’s ambition to take back the island of Taiwan could flare into a new conflict. “Ukraine today may be East Asia tomorrow,“ the Japanese leader said.
Last month, Japan’s government approved a major defense policy overhaul, including a significant spending hike, as it warned China poses the “greatest strategic challenge ever” to its security.
In its largest defense shake-up in decades, Japan vowed to increase security spending to two percent of GDP by 2027, reshape its military command, and acquire new missiles that can strike far-flung enemy launch sites.-AFP