Japan's Suga and US Biden Hold First Phone Talk... Confirm Strengthening of US-Japan Alliance (Summary)

10-Minute Call on the 12th... Biden: "US-Japan Security Treaty Article 5 Applies to Senkaku Islands"

President-elect Joe Biden [Image source=AP Yonhap News]

Yoshihide Suga, Prime Minister of Japan
Photo by AP News

[Asia Economy Reporter Jeong Hyunjin] Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga held his first phone call on the morning of the 12th with U.S. President-elect Joe Biden, who has effectively secured victory in the U.S. presidential election. The two leaders agreed on strengthening the U.S.-Japan alliance and recognized that the U.S.-Japan Security Treaty applies to the Senkaku Islands (Chinese name Diaoyu Islands) in Okinawa Prefecture, where Japan and China have a territorial dispute.

According to NHK and other broadcasters, Prime Minister Suga and President-elect Biden spoke on the phone for about 10 minutes that morning. This was their first exchange of views by phone since Biden’s victory was confirmed on the 7th (local time). After the call, Suga told reporters, "I conveyed my congratulations to President-elect Biden and Vice President-elect Harris, the first woman to hold the position."

Suga said to Biden, "The Japan-U.S. alliance is indispensable for peace and prosperity in the increasingly severe regional and international environment surrounding Japan, and it needs to be further strengthened," adding, "We agreed that Japan and the United States will cooperate to realize a free and open Indo-Pacific."

Regarding this, President-elect Biden promised the application of Article 5 of the U.S.-Japan Security Treaty to the Senkaku Islands, Suga reported. Article 5 of the U.S.-Japan Security Treaty stipulates that if either country is subject to an armed attack on Japanese territory or U.S. bases in Japan, both countries will respond to the common threat according to their constitutional provisions and procedures. Previously, the Donald Trump administration also confirmed that the Senkaku Islands fall under the scope of the U.S.-Japan Security Treaty obligations for U.S. defense of Japan.

Suga also stated, "We agreed to cooperate on international community challenges such as measures against the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) and climate change, as well as on the issue of North Korea’s abduction of Japanese citizens."

The Japanese government plans to regard President-elect Biden as the next president and build a trusting U.S.-Japan relationship despite President Trump’s refusal to concede. Regarding his visit to the U.S., Suga said, "I think it will be arranged at an appropriate time in the future, but we agreed on the position to meet President-elect Biden as soon as possible." Japanese media expect Suga’s visit to the U.S. to take place around February, after the U.S. presidential inauguration in January next year.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.