Despite criticism even before the program is announced, Biden arrived in Japan on Sunday to announce a plan for greater U.S. economic engagement with the Indo-Pacific.
As part of his first trip to Asia as president, U.S. President Joe Biden arrived in Japan. The next two days will be busy for the president. A U.S.-led, multination trade initiative will also be promoted during his meeting with Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and Emperor Naruhito on Monday. In addition, he will attend a Quad group summit on Tuesday with Indian, Australian, and Japanese leaders.
On Sunday, the President of the United States arrived in Japan to unveil an economic plan for more American engagement with the twelve Indo-Pacific countries to boost their economies as he cautioned America anxious about high inflation rates. pic.twitter.com/luPDGdhWIP
Aimed at engaging a region increasingly influenced by China, Biden’s Indo-Pacific Economic Framework is an attempt to engage the region. An announcement like this was one of the highlights of Biden’s visit to the continent, which started last week in South Korea and continues this week in Japan. The U.S. president said as he launched the plan today that he and his team visited Japan to discuss one simple idea: the future of the 21st-century economy will be written in the Indo-Pacific.
Following a two-day trip to South Korea, Biden landed at Yokota Air Base outside Tokyo, underscoring the U.S.’s commitment to the region. Unfortunately, North Korea ignored Washington’s outreach efforts and maybe tested a nuclear-capable missile or bomb while the U.S. leader visited the region. Biden was in neighboring South Korea when Kim Jung Un did not conduct a nuclear test, but U.S. officials are still unaware of what might happen.
The United States to Reduce Dependance on China
Providing an economic framework is a delicate balance that the president is walking. As Asian nations seek ways to partner with the U.S. to reduce dependence on China, Biden is also facing protective sentiments at home, where the economy’s pain in the form of soaring prices proved the central issue in the midterm elections this November.
Biden’s promotion of the American economy comes at a time when China is experiencing significant economic disruptions due to the Coronavirus outbreak. Moreover, according to Jake Sullivan, Biden’s national security adviser, when people speculate on what North Korea might or might not do, they manage to have their expectations disappointed one way or another.
The US President Joe Biden in Japan for US-Asia trade talks Source: Web
For the first time since 1976, the U.S. economy will grow faster than the world’s second-largest economy this year, according to Sullivan. It is a striking example of how countries in this region should think about trends and trajectories. International “food security” will be one of the topics discussed, with Modi’s decision one week ago to block the export of Indian wheat on top of the Russian refusal to allow Ukrainian wheat to reach the world market during the ongoing war between the two nations.
In addition to, the United States, Australia, Brunei, India, Indonesia, Japan, South Korea, Malaysia, New Zealand, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam participate in the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework (IPEF). A wide range of Asian countries from highly advanced economies like Japan and South Korea to countries that have not always aligned with the U.S. economically.
