Japanese PM Fumio Kishida Arrives in U.S. for Talks with Biden, Yoon

By Hirotaka Kuriyama and Hiroshi Tajima / Yomiuri Shimbun Staff Writers

14:38 JST, August 18, 2023

WASHINGTON — Prime Minister Fumio Kishida arrived in the United States on Thursday afternoon ahead of official talks with U.S. President Joe Biden and South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol.

Kishida, who flew into Joint Base Andrews in the suburbs of Washington on a government aircraft, will attend a Japan-U.S.-South Korea summit meeting Friday at the Camp David presidential retreat in the city’s outskirts.

It will be the first time for the three leaders to assemble independently beyond the confines of an international conference and the first time for Biden to welcome foreign leaders to Camp David since taking office in 2021.

The three heads are expected to agree to hold regular summit and ministerial meetings, as well as joint drills involving Japan’s Self-Defense Forces and U.S. and South Korean forces. Kishida is also scheduled to meet separately with his two counterparts.

Biden headed to Camp David on Thursday from the White House.

Rahm Emanuel, U.S. ambassador to Japan, told CNN on Thursday that the trilateral meeting was intended to strengthen deterrence against China and Russia.