Biden to host Japan PM Kishida in Washington on April 10
WASHINGTON, Jan. 25 Kyodo - U.S. President Joe Biden will host Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida for an official visit on April 10, including a state dinner, to discuss efforts to reinforce the bilateral alliance and their cooperation in dealing with challenges facing the Indo-Pacific region, the White House said Thursday.
White House spokeswoman Karine Jean-Pierre said in a statement that Kishida's visit to Washington will emphasize "the enduring strength of our alliance partnership, the unwavering U.S. commitment to Japan and Japan's increasing global leadership role."
The visit comes as Kishida has been struggling with low approval ratings, particularly after a political fundraising scandal involving lawmakers of his ruling party surfaced.
Biden is also grappling with weak public support and is increasingly busy campaigning for the November presidential election that could see a rematch between him and his predecessor Donald Trump, a clear front-runner in the race for the Republican nomination.
Kishida, who disclosed Biden's invitation in November, and his aides are believed to be seeking to shore up his flagging popularity through the upcoming trip to Washington.
"Japan is one of our closest allies in the whole world, certainly a very critical alliance in the Indo-Pacific," John Kirby, the White House national security spokesman, told reporters.
"I think you can expect to see a robust discussion about how we're deepening our bilateral cooperation with Japan, and improving our alliance capabilities across the board, but also how we're working together across a range of other threats and challenges in the Indo-Pacific," Kirby said.
"That also includes improving trilateral cooperation with South Korea," he added.
The Biden administration has recognized deepening ties with Japan and South Korea as critical in gaining a better position for the United States in its intensifying competition with China and in responding to security challenges in the Indo-Pacific, including those posed by North Korea's rapid development of nuclear and missile capabilities.
Biden hosted what he called a "historic" trilateral summit with Kishida and South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol in August last year at the U.S. presidential retreat of Camp David near Washington.
Biden also hosted Yoon for a state visit in April 2023 to mark the 70th anniversary of the alliance between their countries.
The forthcoming trip to the Washington area by Kishida will be his third since January last year, which marked his first visit to the U.S. capital after taking office in 2021. The Japanese premier last held in-person talks with Biden in San Francisco in November.
According to the White House, Biden's and Kishida's wives will both be in attendance during the upcoming visit.
The last Japanese leader to visit the United States as a state guest was former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe in 2015, during the administration of then President Barack Obama.
Although Kirby described the upcoming event as a "formal state visit," a Japanese official said it will be an "official visit" -- the phrase also used in the White House statement -- and added that Kishida will be "treated as a state guest."
In terms of diplomatic protocol, there are differences between the two types of visits. A state visit involves more pomp and pageantry in almost all countries.
==Kyodo
