Photo: US Warships , Australia, Philippines and Japan in the South China Sea. April 7, 2024
US President Joe Biden will discuss strengthening economic and defense relations with the leaders of Japan and the Philippines this week. This discussion will take place against the backdrop of threats from North Korea, military actions in Ukraine and Gaza, as well as in the context of confrontation with Chinese expansion, reports Reuters.
Biden's bilateral summit with Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, scheduled for Wednesday, April 10, will strengthen defense ties with Japan, Washington's ally in the Indo-Pacific region and its increasingly important global partner.
On Thursday, Kishida will become the second Japanese leader to address a joint session of Congress. (Recall that his predecessor, Shinzo Abe, spoke there in 2015.)
Biden and Kishida are expected to discuss plans to modernize the structure of the US military command in Japan to improve its interaction with Japanese troops in a possible crisis .
Japan's future participation in the trilateral defense alliance AUKUS, which includes the US, Australia and the UK, will also be considered.
According to officials and experts, obstacles remain to Japan joining AUKUS as Tokyo has yet to put in place better cyber defenses and stricter classification rules.
On Thursday, April 11, Biden will host a bilateral meeting with Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos, followed by a trilateral meeting between the White House chief, Marcos and Quisida, which is expected to discuss countering Chinese pressure on the Philippines in disputed areas of the South China Sea.
Over the weekend, the Philippines said warships from the United States, Australia, the Philippines and Japan would conduct one-day exercises in the South China Sea on Sunday in support of a free and open Indo-Pacific.
US officials note, that high-level interaction with the Philippines will cover not only defense issues, but also areas such as energy and economic security, as well as major infrastructure projects.
Prepared by: Sergey Daga