Washington
CNN
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President Joe Biden entertains Prime Minister Fumio Kishida for a state visit on Wednesday. They included important Oval Office talks that reinforced his commitment to strengthening key partnerships in the Indo-Pacific region as China resurgences militarily and economically.
More than 70 items are expected to be announced as part of the bilateral talks between Mr. Biden and Mr. Biden, covering a wide range of important areas. According to Mr. Kishida and government officials.
These include a commitment to change the structure of U.S. Forces Japan to improve how they integrate, and a commitment to assess where the two countries can co-produce defense weapons to improve cooperation. Includes items related to the establishment and integration of the Military Industrial Council. Officials say missile defenses are being strengthened between the United States, Australia and Japan.
All of these announcements are part of a major renewal of the two countries’ military alliance, but elements of it include changes to the U.S. military structure that will take months for both countries to work on, a senior official said. Stated. .
Biden spoke on the South Lawn of the White House on Wednesday morning, declaring a “monumental alliance between our two great democracies.”
“Together, we have built a closer, stronger, more effective relationship than at any time in our history,” Biden said at his official arrival ceremony.
He also acknowledged that 3,000 cherry trees were gifted to Japan more than 100 years ago and bloom in Washington, D.C., each spring as a symbol of that alliance. Japan has pledged to plant 250 new trees along the Tidal Basin to commemorate the United States’ 250th anniversary in 2026.
Biden acknowledged the “tragic” history between Japan and the United States. He traveled to Hiroshima last year for a summit with G7 leaders and visited the Hiroshima Peace Museum, which records the massive destruction that the US atomic bomb dropped on the city in 1945, at the end of World War II.
Kevin Lamarque/Reuters
President Joe Biden welcomed Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida on a state visit during a meeting in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, DC, on April 10.
Given their bloody history, it would have been easy for the two countries to remain hostile, Biden said.
“Instead, we made a much better choice. We became the closest of friends,” he said.
Biden added today: “Our democracy is a shining beacon of freedom around the world.”
The two leaders also elaborated on space cooperation as Japan has expressed interest in landing its first astronaut on the moon, and strengthening people-to-people ties as student exchanges between the two countries have lagged in recent years. It is also hoped that they will come up with ways to do so. The astronaut will be the first non-American to set foot on the moon.
Those partnerships include a joint artificial intelligence research initiative between Carnegie Mellon University and Keio University in Tokyo, as well as AI-related exchanges between the University of Washington and Washington State University and the University of Tsukuba in Japan, the people said. It is also included. This includes creating scholarships to provide funds for American high school students to study in and travel to Japan.
However, although the United States and Japan have strengthened their cooperation in various fields, there have been recent differences between the two countries on the economic front, with the president opposing Japan’s efforts to acquire US Steel. There is.
At a joint press conference, Kishida responded to a question about Japan-based Nippon Steel’s acquisition of the company, at one time one of the world’s most powerful companies, calling the $14.1 billion acquisition an “investment” in the United States. He explained. state.
Kishida said, “I hope that this discussion will move in a positive direction for both sides.” He did not directly say whether the two leaders had discussed the deal in private talks earlier in the day.
Biden previously said it was “critically important” that the company remain American-owned and operated, but said he would back “my commitment to American workers” at his first press conference in 2024. Stated.
The meeting between Biden and Kishida will be followed by the first-ever summit between the United States, Japan and the Philippines later this week. Biden seeks to draw Pacific allies and partners closer together The region faces Chinese aggression and North Korean nuclear provocations.
Kishida told a news conference that Japan will continue to urge China to “fulfill its responsibilities as a great power” and at the same time strive to establish “constructive and stable” relations with the superpower.
“We have confirmed that any attempt to unilaterally change the status quo through force or coercion is absolutely unacceptable under any circumstances,” it added.
According to one senior administration official, all of the deliverables on the agenda are military and military efforts that seek to “flip the script” and counter China’s efforts to isolate U.S. allies like the Philippines and Japan. It is said to be part of a diplomatic and strategic effort.
Saul Loeb/AFP via Getty Images
U.S. President Joe Biden (Republican) and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida hold a joint press conference in the Rose Garden of the White House in Washington, DC, April 10, 2024 (Photo by SAUL LOEB/AFP) (Photo by SAUL LOEB) /) AFP, via Getty Images)
“The idea of switching to a multilateral grid strategic architecture is to flip the scenario and isolate China,” the official said.
Japan is seeking support from Biden in the Indo-Pacific, with officials viewing Kishida, who has made major changes in Japan’s defense posture in recent years and provided continued support to Ukraine amid Russia’s invasion, as a willing partner. It is central to his alliance building efforts. Prime Minister Kishida has pledged to increase defense spending by 2% of GDP by 2037 and has acquired U.S. Tomahawk missiles to increase its counterattack capabilities.
Before entering the White House, President and National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan told the transition team that he saw alliances and partnerships that had “extraordinary potential if the United States would just turn around and embrace them again.” one government official said.
“What we have done is put together a strategy that is designed to help a wide range of allies and partners understand their part and their goals in the Indo-Pacific strategy,” the official said.
The leaders are expected to announce a long list of defense and diplomatic agreements during their visit, but officials also sought to highlight more symbolic points.
The National Park Service announced that about 150 cherry trees will be cut down later this spring to make way for the construction of a high sea wall around the basin. Japan first donated trees to Washington in the early 20th century.
A senior Biden administration official said the gift of cherry blossoms from Japan was one of the most important diplomatic gifts in U.S. history, second only to the gift from France of the Statue of Liberty.
“While these initiatives may not seem as important as new military command arrangements or military co-production, I think you will find that they are extremely important to our people.” officials said. Said.
Even as Biden praised the alliance with Japan on Wednesday, officials weighed in on the possibility of Donald Trump returning to the Oval Office and what that could mean for U.S. foreign relations. He acknowledged that there are concerns among U.S. allies about this.
“I think everyone recognizes that there is some anxiety and uncertainty in capital about what the future of U.S. policy is going to be,” the official said. “Whether we remain engaged in the pursuit of internationalism and the bipartisan foreign policy efforts that animated the post-World War II and final post-Cold War eras. there is.”
CNN’s Kevin Liptak contributed to this report.
