U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin are making arrangements to visit Japan from March 15 for talks with their Japanese counterparts, marking the first trip to the country by senior members of President Joe Biden's administration, Japanese government sources said Thursday.
In the possible visit through March 17, Blinken and Austin plan to hold so-called two-plus-two talks with Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi and Defense Minister Nobuo Kishi. They are also likely to meet with Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga.
The planned in-person talks, to be held in the midst of the novel coronavirus pandemic, are expected to showcase the robust alliance between the two countries amid China's increasing assertiveness in the Indo-Pacific region, including around the Japan-controlled Senkaku Islands in the East China Sea.