• The two sides are expected to reaffirm their commitment to strengthen the Japan-US alliance to counter China’s assertiveness in the East China Sea and the South China Sea

TOKYO: US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin are planning to visit Japan starting on March 15, multiple sources familiar with relations between the two countries said Thursday.

Blinken and Austin will be the first US cabinet ministers to visit Japan since US President Joe Biden took office in January.

The two US officials are set to meet Japanese Foreign Minister MOTEGI Toshimitsu and Defense Minister Nobuo Kishi in a security meeting, as well as hold talks with Prime Minister SUGA Yoshihide.

The two sides are expected to reaffirm their commitment to strengthen the Japan-US alliance to counter China’s assertiveness in the East China Sea and the South China Sea.

The ministers are also expected to discuss North Korea’s denuclearization as well as its abductions of Japanese citizens. Also likely on the agenda will be defense cooperation in space and cyberspace.

Japan and the United States last held such a ministerial security meeting in Washington in April 2019, when Biden’s predecessor, Donald Trump, was in office.

Suga had considered visiting the United States at an early date for talks with Biden, but Washington was cautious about welcoming him amid the coronavirus pandemic.

The Japanese prime minister was the first Asian leader to have a phone meeting with Biden, holding a call in late January.

JIJI Press