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Vice President Kamala Harris will lead a delegation of almost a dozen U.S. officers on an official go to to Japan, the place they are going to attend the funeral of former Prime Minister Abe Shinzo earlier than touring to the Republic of Korea.
Abe was shot to loss of life in July on a avenue in western Japan by a gunman who opened hearth on him from behind as he delivered a marketing campaign speech. The 67-year-old Abe was Japan’s longest-serving chief when he resigned in 2020.
The journey marks Harris’ first official visits to each international locations since taking workplace final yr. Harris is ready to satisfy with senior authorities officers and civil society leaders, and the White Home mentioned she’s going to elevate financial, commerce and safety pursuits throughout her journey.
Whereas the first function of the journey is to pay respects to the late chief of Japan, senior administration officers on Friday additionally mentioned the delegation seems ahead to a “busy and productive go to, overlaying a variety of points which can be important to us and our allies and companions.”
Along with honoring Abe’s legacy, Harris’ journey goals to each “reaffirm the USA’ dedication to our allies in an more and more complicated safety surroundings” and to “deepen our general engagement within the Indo-Pacific area,” officers added.
The vp will arrive in Tokyo on Monday alongside Rahm Emmanuel, the present U.S. ambassador to Japan; Katherine Tai, the U.S. commerce consultant; Sen. Invoice Hagerty, R-Tenn., who served as ambassador to Japan beneath former President Donald Trump and several other different authorities officers.
Harris will meet with plenty of world leaders throughout her abroad journey, together with a Monday bilateral assembly with Prime Minister Fumio Kishida. On Tuesday, she’s going to meet with Australia’s Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and South Korea’s Prime Minister Han Duck-soo earlier than touring to Korea on Thursday.
In Korea, Harris will meet with President Yoon Suk-yeol to “underscore the power of the U.S.-ROK Alliance and talk about the menace posed by the DPRK, the significance of peace and stability throughout the Taiwan Strait, our rising financial and know-how partnership, and a variety of regional and international points,” senior administration officers mentioned partially.
China regards the self-governed island of Taiwan as its sovereign territory, has not dominated out drive to reunify it with the mainland and has in latest months stepped up navy exercise within the space. That exercise is not less than partially in response to high-level U.S. congressional visits to Taipei, together with by Home Speaker Nancy Pelosi, and stepped-up American arms gross sales.
The U.S.-China relationship has grow to be more and more fraught lately over a number of points, together with the persecution of Muslims and ethnic minorities in China’s western Xinjiang area, clampdowns on dissent in Tibet and Hong Kong, aggressive Chinese language actions within the South China Sea and in opposition to Taiwan, and the dealing with of the coronavirus pandemic.
Administration officers on Friday mentioned the subject of Taiwan will probably “come up within the numerous bilateral conferences each in Japan and Korea,” including: “This can be a possibility for the vp to debate the latest developments and the way in which ahead with the leaders of each Japan and the Republic of Korea.”
These feedback got here quickly after The Biden administration ramped up its diplomatic efforts to press China to finish provocative actions in opposition to Taiwan and warned it about any energetic assist for Russia in its struggle in opposition to Ukraine.
Secretary of State Antony Blinken made each instances in a gathering along with his Chinese language counterpart on Friday in a gathering on the sidelines of the annual U.N. Common Meeting in New York, based on U.S. officers. The session was one of many few that Blinken saved on his schedule after the loss of life of his father on Thursday.
The officers wouldn’t describe the Chinese language response, however mentioned International Minister Wang Yi was receptive to the messages and that the 2 males mentioned the necessity “to keep up open traces of communication and responsibly handle the U.S.-China relationship, particularly throughout instances of pressure.”
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