China, regional security on agenda as Suga arrives in US for summit with Biden

Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga on Thursday night (local time) arrived in the United States, for the first in-person bilateral summit with US President Joe Biden.

Both the leaders will talk at the White House on Friday, in their first face-to-face meeting since Biden took office in January, NHK World reported. The Japanese PM hopes to use the meeting to deepen personal trust and underscore the strength of the Japan-US alliance.

According to the Japanese broadcaster, both the leaders are expected to reaffirm their cooperation on realising a free and open Indo-Pacific as China increases its maritime activity.

A senior Biden administration official on Thursday said both the leaders will discuss a range of regional security concerns in the western Pacific that include China and North Korea.

"I think you will see in the deliverables the things that we have been focusing on is a broader, deeper set of engagements across technology policy, health-related matters, climate, and also regional security," a Biden official said during a telephone briefing, as quoted by Sputnik.

"We will also talk about China and the cross-trade circumstances and I think the United States and Japan seek to play a steady, careful role to underscore our mutual commitment in the maintenance of peace and stability and to take steps to calm tensions and to discourage provocations."

Discussions on China will include Hong Kong and Xinjiang, the official said.

The United States recognises the close economic ties between Japan and China, but Washington and Tokyo will reveal initiatives designed for both countries to take steps to diversify their supply chains and support alternative 5G networks outside of China's Huawei, the official said.

(ANI)

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