US President Joe Biden and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida agreed to “oppose” China in a video conference on Friday, condemning North Korea’s missile tests and reaffirming his country’s commitment to defending White House master Japan.

At a meeting that lasted one hour and 20 minutes, the US President announced that Biden had agreed to travel to Japan in the first half of the year to attend the summit of the “Quad” group, which includes Australia, India and Japan. And the United States.

Biden seeks to restore US-Japanese relations to their previous era, and has made this a priority for him since taking office.

Relations between Washington and Tokyo had cooled during the time of former US President Donald Trump, who questioned the possibility of relations between Washington and several allies in Asia and Europe.

Arranged by video, after the one-hour and 20-minute closed meeting, Biden released a tweet announcing that “it is a matter of pride to hold a meeting with Prime Minister Kishida to strengthen the alliance between the United States and Japan.” Is the cornerstone of peace and security in the Indo-Pacific region and in the world, “uses the nickname for the Asia-Pacific region.

Most of the talks focused on the growing strategic challenge posed by China, which raises concerns in the region over threats to Taiwan, which considers itself a region independent, while Beijing considers itself an integral part of its territory and threatens to forcibly recover. Required.

In a statement issued by the White House, Biden and Kishida “expressed their determination to oppose the Republic of China’s efforts to change the current situation in the East and South China Seas” and “emphasized the importance of peace and stability”. In the Taiwan Strait. “

The US president and Japanese prime minister have expressed their “concern” about Chinese “practices” in Xinjiang, where Washington has accused Beijing of committing genocide against the Muslim Uyghur minority, as well as in Hong Kong.

In the wake of the ongoing dispute between Japan and China over the sovereignty of the strategically uninhabited Senkaku Islands, Biden reaffirmed the United States’ commitment to protect Japan to the fullest extent possible. “

There has been talk of North Korea conducting a series of missile tests since the beginning of this year in defiance of UN resolutions.

The White House announced that Biden and Kishida had recently tested “Dana” and launched ballistic missiles.

On the escalating tensions as a result of the deployment of Russian troops on the border with Ukraine, both Biden and Kishida have stressed the need to work “closely” to prevent Russian aggression.

“The Japanese Prime Minister has promised to continue to work closely with the United States, other allies and partners and the international community to take strong action in response to any attack,” the White House statement said.

Ahead of the meeting, two US officials stressed that its goal was to strengthen the alliance, which has been a pillar of US leadership throughout the region since World War II.

On Thursday, White House spokeswoman Jen Psi announced that Pita and Kishida would discuss economic relations, security and ways to keep the Indo-Pacific region “free and open” in order to maintain the status quo in the Asia-Pacific region. Despite China’s rapid expansion, both militarily and commercially, including maritime trade routes.