Kishida’s Last Foreign Trip

While enthusiasm of presidential election of the Liberal Democratic Party is reaching a peak, Prime Minister Fumio Kishida made his last foreign trip to the United States. In the quadrilateral meeting with the leaders of U.S., Australia and India, or Quad, Kishida insisted on importance of maintaining that framework, as he reaches the end of his term as the prime minister. However, whether the cooperative relationship among four democracies in Asia-Pacific region will be promoted depends on the successor of Kishida and U.S. President Joe Biden.

The Quad leaders meeting followed last meeting in Hiroshima last year, taking opportunity of G7 Summit meeting in Kishida’s home town. In the meeting in Wilmington, Delaware, the hometown of Biden, Kishida emphasized importance of strong commitment to the common vision of a “Free and Open Indo-Pacific” to the international Community.

 

The discussion was focused on North Korea’s intimidation of missile launch, and China’s advance to the East and South China Seas. Kishida expressed strong opposition to any unilateral attempts to change status quo by force or coercion in the region. The Wilmington Declaration condemned “recent illicit missile launches in the region that violate U.N. Security Council resolutions,” and expressed “serious concern over recent dangerous and aggressive actions in the maritime domain.”

 

The Quad has been considering the standpoint of India, which has its own relationship with Russia and China. The declaration urged China, without naming, adherence to U.N. Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), reminding of the arbitral tribunal adjudicating in favor of Philippines in 2016. The declaration also expressed “deepest concern over the war raging in Ukraine including the terrible and tragic humanitarian consequences.” It denounced Russia anonymously.

 

The Quad started as a meeting with those four countries to support recovery from earthquake and tsunami in Indian Ocean in 2004. Kishida counts the Quad as his one of the prominent outcomes of his diplomacy as the prime minister, because the meeting was raised from minister level to the leaders’. The four leaders confirmed that they would continue and strengthen the Quad’s efforts. There is a concern that the Quad may slow down if next U.S. administration would be presided by Donald Trump who prefers bilateral deal to multilateral framework.

 

In the bilateral meeting with Biden, Kishida praised Biden’s leadership for enhancing Japan-U.S. relationship. Kishida said that Japan-U.S. alliance had become stronger than ever. Biden appreciated special friendship with Kishida and commended Kishida’s contributions to develop their bilateral relations. Two retiring leaders reconfirmed their achievement in enhancing multilateral cooperation including G7, Quad, and trilateral framework with South Korea or Philippines.

 

Kishida got back to Japan after addressing at the Summit of the Future in the United Nations, sparing General Debate in U.N. General Assembly. He found higher tension in the sea area around Japan, where vessels of China and Russia passed Soya Strait and Russian aircraft breached Japan’s airspace. This is a free and open Pacific.

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