TOKYO (Reuters) – New Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said on Tuesday that he received a “strong” message from U.S. President Joe Biden about the United States’ commitment to defending the disputed East China Sea islets known as the Senkaku in Japan.
In phone talks on Tuesday morning that lasted roughly 20 minutes, the allies also confirmed their cooperation towards achieving a free and open Indo-Pacific, Kishida told reporters at the prime minister’s official residence.
Japan has become increasingly concerned about Chinese activity in the East China Sea, including incursions into waters around the disputed islands, known as the Diaoyu in China.
(Reporting by Chang-Ran Kim; Editing by Muralikumar Anantharaman)
