Biden to host Kishida to discuss North Korea, China

US President Joe Biden is set to host Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida on January 13 to discuss a range of issues related to the economy and security, the White House said Tuesday. 

The two leaders will talk about Russia's invasion of Ukraine, climate change, stability across the Taiwan Strait, North Korea and "a free and open Indo-Pacific," it added.

The visit comes after Japan recently announced a massive expansion of its defense capabilities in light of China's growing clout in the Indo-Pacific region and security threats posed by North Korea.

In what is considered its largest defense policy overhaul in decades, Tokyo vowed to hike defense spending to 2% of GDP by 2027, restructure its military command and acquire more advanced missile capabilities. 

Meanwhile, Pyongyang has recently conducted a string of missile tests, heightening tensions on the Korean Peninsula. 

What else will the talks focus on?

"President Biden will reiterate his full support for Japan's recently released National Security Strategy, its presidency of the G7, and its term as a non-permanent member of the United Nations Security Council," White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said.

"The leaders will celebrate the unprecedented strength of the US-Japan Alliance and will set the course for their partnership in the year ahead." 

"They will also focus heavily on 'economic security' issues related to China, including cooperation on export controls for sensitive technologies like semiconductors," Christopher Johnstone, head of the Japan program at Washington's Center for Strategic and International Studies think tank, told Reuters.

Biden and Kishida had previously met at the G20 summit in Indonesia late last year.

mk/sri (AP, Reuters)