Clinton held a working lunch with Japanese Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida, and both emerged pledging that US-Japan security and economic ties would remain strong following Abe’s landslide election victory last month.
“Our alliance with Japan remains the cornerstone of American engagement with the region,” Clinton told reporters, noting a wide range of cooperation on everything from disaster relief to the stand-off over nuclear North Korea.
Clinton, due to step down in coming weeks, again affirmed that the United States would stand by its longtime ally in its territorial dispute with China over islets in the East China Sea claimed by both countries.
Tensions over the tiny islands, known as Senkaku in Japan and Diaoyu in China, have flared in recent months, one of several maritime territorial disputes involving China that have worsened as Washington seeks to shift its security focus to Asia.
Abe had hoped to make the United States his first overseas visit following his election last month on a platform that called for both reviving Japan‘s struggling economy and coping with China’s rising power in the region.
However, the visit was postponed due to Obama‘s tight schedule, and Abe traveled instead to Southeast Asia before cutting the trip short this week to return home after Japanese workers were caught up in the hostage crisis in Algeria.
아주경제 앤드류 이 기자=
reporter
Park Sae-jin
swatchsjp@ajunews.com
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