Deutsche Welle (English edition)
US President Joe Biden hosts Japanese PM for first White House meeting
The US and Japan are seeking to bolster their alliance to counter a rising China. It is Biden's first in-person meeting with a foreign leader.
US President Joe Biden met with Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga at the White House on Friday, as the Biden administration seeks to strengthen its alliances in the Asia-Pacific to counter Chinese influence in the region. It is Biden's first in-person meeting with a foreign leader since he became president in January.
"Our cooperation is vital... to meeting the challenges facing our nations and ensuring the future of the region is free and open," Biden said as he sat down with Suga, adding the two nations have a "big agenda ahead of us."
Suga spoke with Vice President Kamala Harris before
meeting Biden, saying the "USJapan alliance needs to be strong." Suga said the US and Japan are "connected by universal values such as freedom, democracy and the rule of law."
US, Japan to work closely on dealing with China
"Our approach to China and our shared coordination and cooperation on that front will be part of the discussion," White House spokesperson Jen Psaki said ahead of the meeting. The two leaders were expected to discuss the human rights situations in Hong Kong and Xinjiang, along with recent Chinese aggression towards Taiwan and Beijing's global 5G aspirations.
As Suga left for the meeting with Biden, he told reporters he wishes to build "a relationship of trust" with the new US president.
Pivot to Asia 2.0?
The Biden administration is seeking to pivot US foreign policy towards Asia and away from the Middle East. Former President Barack Obama attempted a similar strategy during his eightyear tenure, but his administration became mired in its responses to the 2011 Arab Spring and the rise of the "Islamic State" (IS). The so-called "pivot to Asia" also faced criticism after Russia annexed Crimea from Ukraine and pro-Russian separatists rejected Kyiv's rule in 2014.