What Biden and Kishida Agreed To in Their Effort to Bolster Ties
President Biden and Prime Minister Fumio Kishida of Japan reaffirmed on Wednesday the decades-old bond between their two countries, declaring a unity of military and economic purpose as they struggle to confront the actions of an increasingly hostile Chinese government.
Mr. Kishida’s daylong visit at the White House culminated with a lengthy joint statement from the two leaders listing dozens of new agreements. Here is a partial list of some of the major announcements.
Military cooperation
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The United States and Japan announced a plan to upgrade their military command and control functions to better coordinate and work together. “More effective U.S.-Japan Alliance command and control provides strengthened deterrence and promotes a free and open Indo-Pacific,” the two leaders announced in a statement released hours after their meeting.
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The two countries said they would increasingly partner to produce military equipment. “We announce our intention to explore co-production of advanced and interoperable missiles for air defense and other purposes to further bolster the Alliance deterrence posture,” the statement said.
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The Biden administration said it would ask Congress for authorization to use private companies in Japan to do some repairs on U.S. naval ships. The two countries also announced that they would “explore the possibility of conducting maintenance and repair on engines of Japan-based U.S. Air Force aircrafts, including fourth-generation fighters.”
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The two countries revealed that the United States, Britain and Australia, which agreed to join forces last year to construct and deploy advanced nuclear submarines, are “considering cooperation with Japan” in the partnership, known as Aukus.
Space exploration
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The two countries agreed that two Japanese astronauts would be among those to travel to the moon on future American Artemis missions. “Japan will provide and maintain a pressurized rover to support astronauts living and working on the moon, while the United States will allocate two astronaut flight opportunities to the lunar surface for Japan on future Artemis missions,” the statement said.
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Japan will participate in a NASA mission known as Dragonfly, bound for the Saturn moon Titan, and collaborate on the Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope, a next-generation observatory.