Biden in bid to bolster ties
• Meetings with leaders of Japan and the Philippines intended to nurture military co-operation
US President Joe Biden hosts the leaders of Japan and the Philippines this week to boost economic and defence ties as the allies seek to offset China’s growing might and manage risks ranging from North Korea to the wars in Ukraine and Gaza.
Biden’s bilateral summit with Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida on Wednesday will bring an upgrade in defence ties with Japan, Washington’s cornerstone ally in the Indo-Pacific region and an increasingly important global partner.
Kishida, beleaguered at home, will be greeted in America with great fanfare, with Japanese flags already festooning Washington lampposts and a glittering White House dinner with about 200 guests.
On Thursday, he will become only the second Japanese leader to address a joint meeting of Congress after his assassinated predecessor, Shinzo Abe, gave a speech in 2015.
Political analysts said the visit was a chance for Kishida to boost dire domestic popularity ratings ahead of a September leadership contest in his governing Liberal Democratic Party.
The US will hail Japan as a vital regional and global ally and Kishida will be able to bask in praise for defence reforms that have taken Japan further from its post-war pacifism.
Overshadowing the visit is controversy over the planned $15bn acquisition of American steel maker US Steel by Japan’s Nippon Steel, a deal some say is “on life support” after criticism by Biden and Donald Trump, his rival in November’s US election.
Also looming over the meetings are Japanese concerns that if Trump wins a second term he might seek a deal with China that could destabilise the region, revive protectionist trade measures or demand more money for the upkeep of US forces in Japan, worries some analysts and those close to the former president said were overblown.
On Thursday, Biden will hold a bilateral meeting with Philippines President Ferdinand Marcos, who he welcomed in Washington just last year, before the two join Kishida for a trilateral summit expected to focus on countering Chinese pressure on the Philippines in the disputed South China Sea.
“Close co-operation between Japan, the US and the Philippines is crucial for a free and open order based on the rule of law and for economic prosperity,” Kishida said on Friday.
TROOPS
Japan last year delivered air defence radars to the Philippines and is negotiating a reciprocalaccess agreement that would make it easier for Japanese troops to train there.
At the weekend, the Philippines said US, Japanese, Australian and Philippines warships would conduct a one-day South China Sea exercise on Sunday in support a free and open IndoPacific region.
US officials emphasise that summit interactions with the Philippines will cover more than defence, with “consequential” outcomes in areas such as energy and economic security, and major infrastructure projects.
“It’s a really important moment for us to hear from the Philippines about what kind of support may be most useful,” a senior US official said.
With concerns that Russia’s Ukraine invasion might embolden Beijing to move against Taiwan, a strategic self-ruled island that produces the world’s most advanced semiconductors, the leaders are expected to discuss plans to upgrade the US military command structure in Japan to make it better able to work with Japanese forces in a crisis.
China claims Taiwan as its own territory despite strident objections from the government in Taipei and has never renounced the use of force to bring it under Beijing’s control.
The three leaders are also expected to announce steps to allow more joint development, and potentially co-production, of military and defence equipment, said deputy secretary of state Kurt Campbell, a key architect of US Indo-Pacific policy.
“The current security environment is tough and complex, and we are at a turning point in history,” Kishida said on Friday.
Under Kishida, Japan has pledged to double defence spending to 2% of GDP, which could make it the world’s thirdbiggest military spender. Its plans include acquiring hundreds of cruise missiles that can strike targets 1,000km away.
Japan has also become important to the US as a potential production base for munitions, including Patriot PAC3 anti-missile systems, which will be re-exported to Ukraine. And its shipyards are becoming key for the repair of US warships.
The Biden-Kishida summit is expected to address Japan’s future involvement in the threeway Aukus defence pact between Australia, Britain and the US, but officials and experts say obstacles remain given a need for Japan to introduce better cyber defences and stricter rules for guarding secrets.
INVESTMENT
Amid the Nippon Steel controversy, US officials want to highlight other Japanese investment in the US. Deals in artificial intelligence, cloud computing, aviation and construction will contribute “to good-paying, strong American jobs”, the senior administration official said.
Space is another focus, with Japan hoping to land its first astronaut on the moon with the US Artemis project. “This is the dream,” Kishida told the US PBS NewsHour programme, “that a Japanese astronaut might be stepping his feet on the face of the moon”.