Japan PM to Meet Biden in Washington, with China Topping Agenda

Japan's Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga is scheduled to head to Washington on Thursday to become the first foreign leader to hold face-to-face talks with US President Joe Biden, with concerns about China topping the agenda.

Suga will be hoping to renew the all-important alliance with Washington after the Trump era, in addition to comparing notes on an increasingly assertive Beijing.

This move come on the heels of two top US officials' visit to Japan in March, and following a summit of leaders from the Quad alliance, a grouping of the United States, Japan, Australia and India.

Notably, the matter of all the diplomatic activity has been crystal clear; signaling a united front to Beijing at a time of escalating concern about its military stance and human rights issues.

In Tokyo, the PM's trip is seen as "a sign that the United States puts top priority on East Asia in its diplomacy," Kunihiko Miyake, president of the Foreign Policy Institute think-tank said.

"It means Washington now shares Japan's concerns about a dramatic change in the strategic environment in East Asia over the past decade," Miyake added.

Moreover, the country has been voicing concerns over China's maritime expansion and military build-up, strongly protesting the presence of Chinese vessels around disputed islets known as the Senkaku by Tokyo and the Diaoyu by Beijing.