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Yoshihide Suga and Joe Biden to strengthen US-Japan alliance, with eye on China
- The Japanese PM is looking to visit the United States as soon as possible, he told reporters after a call with the US president
- The two sides also reconfirmed that the US-Japan security treaty applied to a group of Japan-controlled East China Sea islets that Beijing claims
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Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga said on Thursday that he had agreed with US President Joe Biden in a phone call to strengthen their bilateral alliance, as China expands its economic and military might.
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They also agreed to arrange a US visit for Suga as early as possible, the Japanese leader told reporters.
The White House said the two affirmed the importance of the US-Japan alliance “as the cornerstone of peace and prosperity in a free and open Indo-Pacific”.
The two sides said they also reconfirmed that the US-Japan security treaty applied to a group of Japan-controlled East China Sea islets that China claims, called the Senkaku in Japan and Diaoyu in China.
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Diaoyu-Senkaku islands spat deepens as Japan warns China over coastguard ships in East China Sea
Diaoyu-Senkaku islands spat deepens as Japan warns China over coastguard ships in East China Sea
Biden reaffirmed too the US’ commitment to provide “extended deterrence” to Japan, a reference to the US nuclear umbrella covering Japan, the White House said in a statement.
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