US strongly committed to Japan defense, Biden tells Kishida, hails military boost

President Joe Biden told Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida on Friday the United States was "fully, thoroughly, completely" committed to Japan's defense and praised Tokyo's security build up, saying the nations had never been closer.

Kishida is in Washington on the last stop in a tour of the G7 industrial powers and has been seeking to bolster long-standing alliances amid rising concern in Japan, and the United States, about mounting regional security threats from China, North Korea and Russia.

In a meeting at the White House, Biden called it a "remarkable moment" in the US-Japan alliance. He said the two countries had never been closer.

"Let me be crystal clear: The United States is fully, thoroughly, completely committed to the alliance, and importantly ... to the defense of Japan," he said, while also thanking Kishida for strong leadership in working closely on technology and economic issues.

"We are modernizing our military alliances, building on Japan's historic increase in defense spending, and new national security strategy," Biden said.

Kishida thanked Biden for US work on regional security and said: "Japan and the United States are currently facing the most challenging and complex security environment in recent history." He said Tokyo had formulated its new defense strategy released last month "to ensure peace and prosperity in the region."

He said the two countries shared fundamental values of democracy and the rule of law "and the role that we are to play is becoming even greater."

Kishida said he looked forward to a "candid" exchange of views on issues including "a free and open Indo-Pacific" - language the two sides use to describe efforts to push back against China - the G7, which Japan's currently chairs, and climate change.

In a later speech at Washington's Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies, Kishida called China the "central challenge" for both Japan and the United States and said they and Europe must act in unison in dealing with the country.

Kishida also stressed the importance of standing up to Russia's invasion of Ukraine, saying that if a unilateral change to the status quo went unchallenged, the same would happen elsewhere, including in Asia - an apparent reference to China's vow to reunite with self-ruled Taiwan, by force if necessary.

DRAMATIC MILITARY CHANGE

Japan last month announced its biggest military build-up since World War Two - a dramatic departure from seven decades of pacifism, largely fueled by concerns about Chinese actions in the region.

"Biden commended Japan’s bold leadership in fundamentally reinforcing its defense capabilities and strengthening diplomatic efforts," according to a joint US-Japan statement issued after the meeting.