WASHINGTON: The United States and Japan vowed Friday to stand firm together against an assertive China and to step up cooperation on climate change and next-generation technology as President Joe Biden made his first summit a show of alliance unity.
After waiting nearly three months for his first foreign guest due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Biden told Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga that Japan enjoyed the United States’ “iron-clad support” on security issues and beyond.
“We’re going to work together to prove that democracies can still compete and win in the 21st century,” Biden, affectionately calling the Japanese leader “Yoshi,” told a socially distanced news conference in the White House Rose Garden.
A joint statement called for “candid conversations” with China and did not hold back, raising concerns over Beijing’s growing maritime moves, its clampdowns in Hong Kong and Xinjiang and growing tension over Taiwan.
The statement reiterated that the US-Japan Security Treaty covers the Japanese-administered Senkaku islands – one of several areas in the region where Beijing, which calls them the Diaoyu, has increasingly shown its might.
The United States and Japan “recognize the importance of deterrence to maintain peace and stability in the region,” the statement said.
“We oppose any unilateral attempts to change the status quo in the East China Sea,” read one line highlighted by Suga.
The Chinese embassy in the United States hit back on Saturday, expressing “strong concern and firm opposition” to the comments.
“It cannot be more ironic that such an attempt at stoking division and building blocs against other countries is put under the banner of ‘free and open,’” a statement by the embassy said, referring to a US pledge to build a “free and open” Indo-Pacific region.
The matters raised “bear on China’s fundamental interests and allow no interference,” it added.
Biden and Suga also emphasized “the importance of peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait” and encouraged “the peaceful resolution of cross-Strait issues,” as Beijing steps up air incursions in Taiwan.
While cautiously worded, it was the first time a Japanese leader has joined a US president in a statement on Taiwan since the allies separately switched recognition from Taipei to Beijing in the 1970s.
Taiwan is an especially sensitive issue for Beijing, which claims the self-governing democracy.
The forthright statement comes despite Japan’s efforts in recent years not to antagonize China, its top trading partner, including by not joining Western nations in sanctions over human rights.
Suga echoed Biden’s themes as he described the US-Japan alliance as the “foundation of peace and stability” in the region.
“Freedom, democracy, human rights and the rule of law are the universal values that link our alliance,” Suga said.
In a highly unusual comment by a Japanese leader on the US domestic scene, Suga also voiced concern over a wave of attacks in the United States against people of Asian descent.
Biden’s second in-person summit will take place next month with South Korean President Moon Jae-in, part of the new administration’s strategy of shoring up alliances as it zeroes in on China as America’s most pressing challenge.
On another of his key priorities, Biden said he and Suga agreed on the need for “ambitious” climate commitments and indicated that both nations would soon announce goals by 2030.
Biden will lead a virtual summit next week in hopes of rallying climate pledges amid growing evidence of a planetary crisis as average temperatures hit record highs and natural disasters become more frequent.
Japan, the world’s third-largest economy, promised under the Paris accord to reduce emissions by 26 percent by 2030 but from 2013 levels – a goal that experts say is not bold enough to meet Suga’s goal of a carbon-neutral Japan in 2050.
“We confirmed that Japan and the US will lead global decarbonization,” Suga said.
Biden and Suga said they would step up joint development and testing of fifth-generation Internet – as well as the sixth-generation technologies of the future.
The United States and Japan must “maintain and sharpen our competitive edge” and ensure that “those technologies are governed by shared democratic norms that we both share – norms set by democracies, not by autocracies,” Biden said.
China’s Huawei has taken an early dominant role in 5G, which is becoming a crucial part of the global economy, despite heavy US pressure on the company, which Washington argues poses threats to security and privacy.
A joint statement said the United States had committed $2.5 billion and Japan another $2 billion.
Masashi Adachi, a special adviser to Suga, told reporters that the agreement was more about joint development than fresh funding, pointing to several projects underway in Japan on 5G development.
Suga in September succeeded Shinzo Abe, Japan’s longest-serving prime minister, who was one of the few democratic allies to manage to preserve stable relations with Biden’s volatile predecessor Donald Trump.
Biden and Suga also recommitted to the denuclearization of North Korea and discussed next moves following Trump’s unusually personal diplomacy with the totalitarian state.
US, Japan show united front on China in Biden’s first summit
https://arab.news/m8xhj
US, Japan show united front on China in Biden’s first summit
- ‘We’re going to work together to prove that democracies can still compete and win in the 21st century’
Somali president to Asharq Al-Awsat: Working with Saudi-led partners to void Israel’s Somaliland recognition
- Hassan Sheikh Mohamud unveils three-pronged diplomatic and legal strategy to defend Somalia’s sovereignty and territorial unity
- Says Mogadishu coordinates with Saudi Arabia and Arab, African partners to counter what he calls a dangerous precedent
RIYADH: Somali President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud unveiled a three-pronged political and legal strategy to nullify what he described as Israeli recognition of the breakaway region of Somaliland, warning that such a move threatens Somalia’s sovereignty and regional stability.
Speaking to Asharq Al-Awsat, Mohamud said his government is acting in close coordination with partners led by Saudi Arabia to safeguard stability and shield the Horn of Africa from what he called “reckless escalation.”
Without naming specific countries, the Somali leader said some regional states may see the Israeli recognition as an opportunity to pursue “narrow, short-term interests at the expense of Somalia’s unity and regional stability.”
“I do not wish to name any particular country or countries,” he said. “But it is clear that some may view this recognition as a chance to achieve limited gains.”
He stressed that Somalia’s unity is a “red line,” adding that Mogadishu has taken firm positions to protect national sovereignty. “We warn against being misled by reckless Israeli adventurism,” he said.
Mohamud was referring to recognition announced by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of the self-declared Republic of Somaliland as an independent state.
“I affirm with the utmost clarity and firmness that any recognition of Somaliland as an independent state constitutes a blatant violation of the sovereignty and unity of the Federal Republic of Somalia,” he said.
He described the move as a grave breach of international law, the UN Charter, and African Union resolutions that uphold respect for inherited African borders.
On that basis, Somalia has adopted and will continue to pursue three parallel measures, he revealed.
The first involves immediate diplomatic action through the UN, African Union, and Organization of Islamic Cooperation to reject and legally and politically invalidate the recognition.
Mohamud said Somalia called for and secured a formal session at the UN Security Council to address what he termed a “flagrant Israeli violation” of Somalia’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.
The session, he said, marked a significant diplomatic victory for Mogadishu, particularly given Somalia’s current membership on the council.
He expressed “deep appreciation” for statements of solidarity and condemnation issued by the African Union, Arab League, OIC, Gulf Cooperation Council, Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD), and the EU, among others.
The second step centers on coordinating a unified Arab, Islamic, and African position. Mohamud praised Saudi Arabia for being among the first to issue a clear statement rejecting any infringement on Somalia’s unity.
He said the Saudi position reflects the Kingdom’s longstanding commitment to state sovereignty and territorial integrity, reinforced by the Saudi cabinet’s “firm and principled” support for Somalia during what he described as a delicate moment.
The third step focuses on strengthening internal national dialogue to address political issues within the framework of a single Somali state, free from external interference or dictates.
Mohamud warned that if left unchecked, the recognition could set a “dangerous precedent and undermine regional and international peace and security.”
He said it could embolden separatist movements not only in the Horn of Africa but across Africa and the Arab world, citing developments in countries such as Sudan and Yemen as evidence of the high cost of state fragmentation.
“This concerns a vital global shipping artery and core Arab national security,” he said, referring to the Red Sea.
“Any political or security tension along Somalia’s coast will directly affect international trade and energy security.”
He added that instability would impact Red Sea littoral states, particularly Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Sudan, Eritrea, Yemen, and Jordan. “Preserving Somalia’s unity is a cornerstone of collective Red Sea security,” he said.
Mohamud argued that Israel’s objective goes beyond political recognition.
“We believe the goal extends beyond a political gesture,” he told Asharq Al-Awsat. “It includes seeking a strategic foothold in the Horn of Africa near the Red Sea, enabling influence over the Bab Al-Mandeb Strait and threatening the national security of Red Sea states.”
He described the move as a test of Somali, Arab, and African resolve on issues of sovereignty and territorial unity, emphasizing that Somalia’s opposition to secession is a principled and enduring national stance supported widely in the Arab and African worlds, “foremost by Saudi Arabia.”
He rejected any attempt to turn Somalia into a battleground for regional or international rivalries. “We will not allow Somalia to become an arena for settling conflicts that do not serve our people’s interests or our region’s security,” he declared.
Regarding Saudi-Somali relations, Mohamud described the partnership as “deep-rooted and strategic, rooted in shared history, religion, and a common destiny.” Saudi Arabia, he said, “remains a central partner in supporting Somalia’s stability, reconstruction, development, and Red Sea security.”
He voiced admiration for Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030 and the economic and development gains achieved under the leadership of Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman bin Abdulaziz and Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Crown Prince and Prime Minister.
Asked about the recent Saudi Cabinet decision rejecting any attempt to divide Somalia, Mohamud said the federal government received it with “great appreciation and relief.”
He said the position extends the Kingdom’s historic support for Somalia’s territorial unity and sovereignty, reinforces regional stability, and sends an important message to the international community on the need to respect state sovereignty and refrain from interference in internal affairs.
