Biden welcomes Japan PM for state visit with eye on China

US President Joe Biden and First Lady Jill Biden welcome Fumio Kishida, Japan's prime minister and his wife Yuko Kishida to the White House in Washington, DC on April 9, 2024. - Bloomberg

WASHINGTON: US President Joe Biden welcomed Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida to the White House on Tuesday (April 9), kicking off a state visit featuring a major upgrade in defence ties against a resurgent China.

A gala dinner and Rose Garden press conference are on the menu for the formal part of the visit on Wednesday, in a sign of the value Washington places on an increasingly self-confident Japan.