UPDATED 4:45 P.M.
CAMP DAVID, Maryland (Reuters) -U.S. President Joe Biden and the leaders of South Korea and Japan agreed at Camp David on Friday to deepen military and economic ties and made their strongest joint condemnation yet of “dangerous and aggressive behavior” by China in the South China Sea.
The Biden administration held the summit with the leaders of the main U.S. allies in Asia, South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, in a bid to project unity in the face of China’s growing power and nuclear threats from North Korea.
In a joint summit statement, the three countries committed to consult promptly with each other during crises and to coordinate responses to regional challenges, provocations and threats affecting common interests.
They also agreed to hold trilateral military training exercises annually and to share real-time information on North Korean missile launches by the end of 2023. The countries promised to hold trilateral summits annually.
The language on China stood out as stronger than expected, and is likely to provoke a response from Beijing, which is a vital trading partner for both South Korea and Japan.
“Regarding the dangerous and aggressive behavior supporting unlawful maritime claims that we have recently witnessed by the People’s Republic of China (PRC) in the South China Sea, we strongly oppose any unilateral attempts to change the status quo in the waters of the Indo-Pacific,” the statement said.
The commitments at Biden’s first Camp David summit for foreign leaders represent a significant move for Seoul and Tokyo, which have a long history of mutual acrimony and distrust. Biden said woodsy Camp David was a venue that had long symbolized “the power of new beginnings and new possibilities.”
“If I seem like I’m happy, I am,” he told a news conference, calling it a “new era” for the three countries. “This has been a great, great meeting.”
In keeping with the rustic retreat’s relaxed setting, the three all wore jackets without ties.
‘BREATHTAKING’ DIPLOMACY
Standing alongside Kishida and Yoon, Biden praised the leaders for their political courage in pursuing a rapprochement. He said they understood the world was “at an inflection point, where we’re called to lead in new ways, to work together, to stand together.”
“Critically, we’ve all committed to swiftly consult with each other in response to threats to any one of our countries from whatever source it occurs.” he said. “That means we’ll have a hotline to share information and coordinate our responses whenever there is a crisis in the region, or affecting any one of our countries.”
“Together we’re going to stand up for international law,” and against “coercion,” Biden said.
Without mentioning China by name, Kishisa said, “Unilateral attempts to change the status quo by force in the East and South China Seas are continuing,” while adding that the North Korean nuclear and missile threat was “only becoming ever larger.”
With Washington’s encouragement, Tokyo and Seoul are navigating their way past disputes dating to Japan’s 1910-1945 occupation of the Korean Peninsula.
U.S. officials say those disputes are among the reasons the three countries are not currently pursing a three-way mutual-defense pact like those Washington has separately with both Seoul and Tokyo – who are not themselves formal allies.
However Kurt Campbell, Biden’s coordinator for Indo-Pacific affairs, said the summit represented “a breathtaking kind of diplomacy, that has been led by courageous leaders in both Japan and South Korea.
“They have sometimes gone against the advice of their own counselors and staff and taken steps that elevate the Japan-South Korea relationship into a new plane,” he said.
CHINA VIEWS SUMMIT WARILY
Beijing has warned that U.S. efforts to strengthen ties with South Korea and Japan could “increase tension and confrontation in the region.”
While South Korea, Japan and the United States want to avoid provoking Beijing, China believes Washington is trying to isolate it diplomatically and encircle it militarily.
Asked about charges leveled by China, Biden’s national security adviser Jake Sullivan told reporters the aim was “explicitly not a NATO for the Pacific” and also said a trilateral alliance had not been set as an explicit goal.
Tensions in the South China Sea have flared between U.S. ally the Philippines and China over a grounded warship that serves as a Philippine military outpost in the strategic waterway, a major global trade route.
The White House, conscious of upcoming elections, wants to make the progress between South Korea and Japan hard to reverse by institutionalizing routine cooperation across the board.
Biden, an 80-year-old Democrat seeking another four-year term in the 2024 presidential election, faces a likely opponent in Republican former President Donald Trump, who has voiced skepticism about whether Washington benefits from its traditional military and economic alliances.
South Korea has legislative elections next year and Japan must hold one before October 2025, and what analysts see as a still fragile rapprochement between the two nations remains controversial among the countries’ voters.
(Reporting by Trevor Hunnicutt at Camp David and David Brunnstrom and Susan Heavey in Washington; Additional reporting by Hyonhee Shin in Seoul; Editing by Don Durfee, Grant McCool, Alistair Bell and Cynthia Osterman)
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CAMP DAVID, Maryland (Reuters) – The United States prevailed on Japan and South Korea on Friday to use their strongest language yet in a joint statement to condemn China’s “dangerous and aggressive actions” in the South China Sea.
In the Korean version of a Camp David summit joint statement seen by Reuters, the three countries committed to consult promptly with each other during crises and to coordinate responses to regional challenges, provocations and threats affecting common interests.
The statement also committed to hold trilateral military training exercises annually and to share real-time information on North Korean missile launches by the end of 2023. The countries promised to hold trilateral summits annually as well.
U.S. President Joe Biden on Friday earlier welcomed the leaders of South Korea and Japan to a summit at Camp David aimed at bolstering ties as the three countries seek to project unity in the face of China’s rise and nuclear threats from North Korea.
The statement said the three would launch a supply-chain early warning system pilot project to expand information-sharing and fight economic coercion together.
On their response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the leaders agreed to continue supporting Kiev and to maintain strong, coordinated sanctions against Moscow, while also aiming to further curb dependence on Russian energy.
But it was the language on China that stood out as stronger than expected, and which is likely to provoke a response from Beijing, which is a vital trading partner for both Korea and Japan.
“Regarding the dangerous and aggressive actions we recently witnessed by the People’s Republic of China in support of its illegal maritime territorial claims in the South China Sea, we … strongly oppose any attempt to unilaterally change the status quo in the Indo-Pacific waters,” the statement said.
(Reporting by Hyonhee Shin, Trevor Hunnicutt and David Brunnstrom; Editing by Don Durfee and Alistair Bell)
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CAMP DAVID, Maryland (Reuters) -U.S. President Joe Biden on Friday welcomed the leaders of South Korea and Japan to a summit at Camp David where the three countries are set to deepen military and economic ties as they seek to project unity in the face of China’s rise and nuclear threats from North Korea.
U.S. National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan told a news briefing the meeting would announce “significant steps” to enhance trilateral security cooperation, including a commitment to consult each other in times of crisis.
Sullivan said the steps would include a multi-year military exercise plan, deeper coordination and integration on ballistic missile defense and improved information sharing, crisis communication and policy coordination “that goes along with responding to contingencies in the Indo-Pacific.”
He said the leaders would also unveil new economic and energy security initiatives including an early warning mechanism for supply chain disruptions.
The commitments, which fall short of a formal alliance, will be the centerpiece of Biden’s first Camp David summit for foreign leaders and represent a significant move for Seoul and Tokyo, which have a long history of mutual acrimony and distrust.
Biden, South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida are expected to have several hours to strategize a the mountainside presidential retreat over how to manage tensions in the Indo-Pacific region and beyond.
Kishida and Yoon, in jackets with no ties, walked side-by-side to shake hands with Biden before heading indoors, where they are expected to have a working lunch at Camp David’s President’s Cabin, Aspen Lodge.
“Strengthening ties between our democracies has long been a priority for me,” Biden said. “Our countries are stronger and the world would be safer as we stand together.”
Biden praising the visiting leaders for their “political courage” in coming together.
Yoon cited former U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt as saying that freedom was not given but something that needed to be fought for and added: “Our three countries should be firmly united so that our freedom is not threatened or damaged.”
Kishida said the gathering showed the three countries were “making … (a) new history as of today.”
The summit is expected to produce a series of joint statements, including commitments to establish a crisis hotline, work together on emerging technologies and to meet annually.
The meeting is freighted with symbolism: with Washington’s encouragement, Tokyo and Seoul are navigating their way past disputes dating to Japan’s 1910-1945 occupation of the Korean Peninsula.
Those disputes are among the reasons the leaders would not now consider a mutual-defense pact along the lines of what the United States has separately with both South Korea and Japan – who are not themselves formal allies – according to U.S. officials who declined to be identified while previewing the summit.
“What we have seen over the last couple of months is a breathtaking kind of diplomacy, that has been led by courageous leaders in both Japan and South Korea,” said Kurt Campbell, Biden’s coordinator for Indo-Pacific affairs.
“They have sometimes gone against the advice of their own counselors and staff and taken steps that elevate the Japan-South Korea relationship into a new plane,” Campbell said.
CHINA VIEWS SUMMIT WARILY
No specific action by the trio in Camp David is expected to sharply increase tensions with China, though Beijing has warned that U.S. efforts to strengthen ties with South Korea and Japan could “increase tension and confrontation in the region.”
While South Korea, Japan and the United States want to avoid provoking Beijing, China believes Washington is trying to isolate it diplomatically and encircle it militarily.
Responding to a question about charges leveled by China, Sullivan said the aim was “explicitly not a NATO for the Pacific” and also said a trilateral alliance had not been set as an explicit goal.
“We have not set an endpoint of a formal trilateral alliance,” Sullivan said, while adding that the commitment to consult was “a very significant step because it means that the three countries recognize their common interest in having a coherent and coordinated response to any security contingency.”
Tensions in the South China Sea have flared between U.S. ally the Philippines and China over a grounded warship that serves as a Philippine military outpost in the strategic waterway, a major global trade route.
North Korea‘s military said it had scrambled jets after a U.S. reconnaissance aircraft intruded into its economic zone off its east coast, state news agency KCNA reported on Friday.
Biden, an 80-year-old Democrat seeking another four-year term in the 2024 presidential election, faces a likely opponent in Republican former President Donald Trump, who has voiced skepticism about whether Washington benefits from its traditional military and economic alliances.
South Korea has legislative elections next year and Japan must hold one before October 2025, and what analysts see as a still fragile rapprochement between the two nations remains controversial among the countries’ voters.
The White House, conscious of the electoral clock, wants to make the progress between South Korea and Japan hard to reverse, including by establishing routine cooperation on military exercises, ballistic missile defense, the economy, and scientific and technological research.
(Reporting by Trevor Hunnicutt at Camp David and David Brunnstrom and Susan Heavey in Washington; Additional reporting by Hyonhee Shin in Seoul; Editing by Don Durfee, Grant McCool and Alistair Bell)
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