WILMINGTON (Delaware): Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida’s latest visit to the United States, which came just before his resignation, to take part in a Quad summit was intended to underscore the importance of Japan’s relations with allies and like-minded nations.

Kishida apparently aims to pass on the results of the four-way summit to the next administration as the culmination of summit diplomacy, which he claims is his strong area.

“During my tenure, I have consistently focused on the collaboration among Japan, the United States, Australia and India,” Kishida said at the start of the Quad summit, held in Wilmington, Delaware, on Saturday. “This is the most appropriate meeting for me to attend on my final foreign trip as prime minister.”

This was the fourth time for Kishida to join a summit among Japan, the United States, Australia and India, including in an online format.

Since taking office in 2021, the Japanese prime minister has worked hard to expand the network of allies and like-minded nations, leveraging the robust Japan-US relationship. This approach is based on his belief that the US engagement in the Indo-Pacific region is critical in countering China, which has been expanding hegemonic behavior.

To lay the foundation for the strategy, Kishida has put efforts into beefing up the Japan-US alliance. In response to the US request for Japan to play a greater role in the security field, the Kishida government decided to raise taxes to cover a planned boost in defense spending. Kishida also worked to improve coordination in command and control between Japan’s Self-Defense Forces and the US military.

In a joint statement adopted at Saturday’s Quad summit, Kishida, US President Joe Biden, Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi said, “We strongly oppose any destabilizing or unilateral actions that seek to change the status quo by force or coercion” while stopping short of directly naming China.

The Wilmington Declaration also said, “We are seriously concerned about the situation in the East and South China seas.”

Earlier on Saturday, Biden invited Kishida to his private residence in Wilmington to hold a bilateral summit. In the talks, held in an amicable atmosphere, Biden, who is set to step down at the end of his current term, commended Kishida’s diplomacy during the three years of office, according to sources with access to the meeting.

Japan-US relations are in a “golden age,” with many things having been achieved, a senior official of Japan’s Foreign Ministry said of the relationship of trust between Kishida and Biden.

Kishida is expected to step down Oct. 1, when Japan’s parliament is seen electing a new prime minister. The parliamentary vote would come after the Japanese ruling Liberal Democratic Party’s election to pick its new president to succeed Kishida.

Kishida is expected to carefully evaluate the LDP election’s nine candidates in terms of who will definitely take over his diplomatic strategy.

Before his departure to the United States, Kishida was asked by reporters whom he would support in the LDP leadership race. He replied, “I plan to make a decision after carefully listening to (each candidate’s) policies and views until the last minute.”

Meanwhile, November’s US presidential election is a source of concern for Japan.

If US Vice President Kamala Harris, the Democratic candidate, wins the election, she would likely succeed Biden’s diplomatic strategy.

But if former President Donald Trump, the Republican nominee, returns to the White House, “uncertainty in Japan-US relations would increase,” a person related to Japan’s Foreign Ministry said.

“If there is a change in the administration, policies may also change,” a Japanese government source said, showing concern that Japan-US relations could be shaken depending on the outcome of the closely watched US presidential election.

JIJI Press