President Joe Biden arrived in Hiroshima, Japan, on Thursday for his meeting with G7 leaders as the U.S. debt crisis casts a cloud over the global summit. On his flight over to Japan, National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan criticized reports that President Biden's cancellation of the Australia and Papua New Guinea portion of his trip was a win for Chinese President Xi Jinping. Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida also invited the leaders of the Quad - which is made up of Australia, India, the United States, and Japan - to join the discussions at G7.
Analysts claim that President Biden's decision cast doubt on U.S. credibility in the Pacific island region where Washington is competing with Beijing for influence. Former White House deputy national security adviser Victoria Coates stated: "It's hard to argue with the fact that China is coming out on top of this particular exchange." However, White House aides dismissed concerns about diminished standing amid ongoing debt ceiling negotiations.
Upon arriving at Hiroshima, President Biden held a bilateral meeting with Prime Minister Kishida discussing topics such as economic cooperation, promoting clean energy sources and secure critical minerals supply chains. They also addressed challenges like Ukraine war issues facing North Korea’s nuclear program and coercive behavior from China.
During this visit to Japan—hosting its first-ever defense show earlier this year—the country announced plans to double its national defense budget by 2027 due primarily growing security concerns involving China’s military buildup along their borders as well North Korea threat levels increasing consistently since Kim Jong Un took power back 2011; these factors have caused significant shifts within regional geopolitics dynamics overall throughout Asia-Pacific area today