U.S. President Joe Biden (Photo: Yonhap News)
U.S. President Joe Biden has reaffirmed the United States' commitment to defend Japan in his first phone call with Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga.
The White House on Wednesday said Biden also made clear that their security alliance also applied to the Senkaku Islands, a group of uninhabited islets administered by Tokyo but claimed by Beijing.
That statement is seen as the U.S. sending a message to China over its growing military activity in the Asia-Pacific region.
The two leaders also agreed on the need for the complete denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula.
Suga said he would visit Washington as soon as possible.
Biden has pledged to restore U.S. alliances left in the lurch by Donald Trump's "America First" policy.
His new secretary of state, Antony Blinken, spoke to both his South Korean and Japanese counterparts and emphasized the administration's commitment to strengthening relations with both.
Biden earlier held phone talks with Canada's Justin Trudeau, Mexico's Andres Manuel Lopez Obrado and Russian President Vladimir Putin.
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