Biden announces new steps to deepen military ties between the U.S. and Japan
Washington — The U.S., Japan and Australia will create a joint air defense network, President Biden announced alongside the Japanese prime minister Wednesday, unveiling several new initiatives aimed at deepening defense and intelligence cooperation between their two countries.
"Together, our countries are taking significant steps to strengthen defense security cooperation," Mr. Biden said during a joint press conference with Prime Minister Fumio Kishida in the White House Rose Garden. "We're modernizing command and control structures. And we're increasing the interoperability and planning of our militaries so they can work together in a seamless and effective way. This is the most significant upgrade in our alliance since it was first established. I'm also pleased to announce that for the first time, Japan and the United States and Australia will create a network of air missile and defense architecture."
And AUKUS — the Biden-era trilateral defense partnership between the U.S., Australia and the U.K. — "is exploring how Japan can join our work," Mr. Biden said.
The announcements come amid increasing concerns over China's influence in the Indo-Pacific and globally. Kishida is in Washington this week for his first official state visit as prime minister.
"Our alliance we have with Japan is purely defensive in nature," Mr. Biden said. "It's a defensive alliance. And the things we discuss today improve our cooperation and are purely about defense and readiness. It's not aimed at any one nation or a threat to the region, and it doesn't have anything to do with conflict."
Mr. Biden also announced that two Japanese astronauts will join future American space missions, and one of them will become the first non-American to land on the moon's surface.
The president and Kishida met at the White House Wednesday before holding a joint press conference. Mr. Biden and first lady Jill Biden are hosting a state dinner in the Japanese leader's honor Wednesday night, recognizing the decades-long relationship between the two nations.
"President Eisenhower said his goal was to establish an indestructible partnership between our countries," Mr. Biden said. "Today, the world can see, that goal has been achieved, and that partnership between us is unbreakable."
Details of an enhanced military partnership will be worked out by Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and his Japanese counterpart in the next several months, senior administration officials told reporters on Tuesday. The U.S., however, expects Japan to step up and play a significant role in producing more military and defense equipment.
With Philippines President Bongbong Marcos joining the two leaders for a three-way summit on Thursday, one clear goal of this week's meetings between the U.S. and the Asian nations has become clear: underscoring global coordination in the face of increased hostility in the region from China.
China in recent weeks has had some maritime run-ins in the South China Sea with the Philippines, with the Chinese Coast Guard directing water guns at Filipino vessels.
This hostility will not deter the Philippines, U.S. officials said. "The country that is isolated on Thursday is China, not the Philippines," one official said about the three-way Washington summit this week.
Regarding greater intelligence cooperation, U.S. officials noted the Japanese have "taken substantial steps" to protect the most sensitive intelligence information, although the official said there's "still more work to do" before Japan reaches the required level of information security to potentially join the Five Eyes intelligence network. Joining that intelligence sharing agreement — which consists of the U.S., Canada, Australia, New Zealand and the United Kingdom — is viewed by Japanese security experts as a means of adding more protection against China's provocations.
The high-level objectives are part of a 70-point plan that the U.S. and Japan are expected announce this week.
Other promises are more lighthearted. Japan has offered saplings to replace hundreds of popular cherry blossom trees in the Tidal Basin area, and the Japanese prime minister was expected to start some of these plantings at a ceremony on the National Mall on Wednesday.
A "major" lunar agreement, increased university research and a new scholarship for U.S. high school students to enter into exchange study programs with Japanese schools will also be announced, the officials said.
Overall, the U.S. officials also said the U.S.-Japan alliance shows that Mr. Biden's theory of increased engagement with Indo-Pacific nations can foster more cooperation throughout the world. One senior administration official said previously Japan was only worried about its "perimeter," but in recent years, the country has been a vocal supporter of Ukraine, sanctions against Russia, and has engaged more in the Middle East.
"Anywhere American purpose is being put to the test, Japan is by our side," one U.S. official said.