Biden and Kishida meet to reaffirm peace commitments to the Indo-Pacific region – Organization for World Peace

At the Quad Leaders' Summit, President Biden and Prime Minister Kishida met to discuss advancing cooperation in security, diplomacy and economic issues. They discussed their mutual concerns over recent coercive and destabilizing activities in the South China Seas. They also expressed their gratitude for their mutual support in the defense of the Alliance. They also reaffirmed their commitment to maintaining peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait, affirming their approval of the status quo. They also reaffirmed their continued commitment to developing and protecting AI and semiconductor technologies, while developing strategies to strengthen their economic security.

At a joint press conference, Prime Minister Kishida said: “In this perspective, we agreed that our two countries will continue to respond to challenges regarding China through close coordination. At the same time, we confirmed the importance of continuing our dialogue with China and cooperating with it on common challenges. We also stressed the importance of peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait and confirmed our position of encouraging a peaceful resolution of the cross-Strait issue.

When asked whether strengthening defense between the two countries against China was the appropriate measure to avoid provocation, Kishida replied: Based on the solid trust with our ally, the United States, we will continue to call on China to assume its responsibilities as a major power. . Japan's policy, which I have always adopted, is to comprehensively promote mutual strategic relations with China and establish a constructive and stable relationship between Japan and China through the efforts of both sides.

Biden echoed that sentiment, saying his recent peace talks with Chinese President Xi Jinping focused on maintaining open communication to reduce the chance of misunderstandings and miscalculations.

The reaffirmation of alliances between democratic countries is essential to maintaining the stability of the international order. The U.S.-Japan alliance is particularly crucial at a time when the Indo-Pacific region is a hotly contested area. Reaffirming the commitment to peace across the Taiwan Strait is important in light of growing threats emanating from China. Taiwan is a democratic state and a powerful ally of the United States, particularly vulnerable to coercion from China. This is why military defense must be implemented to ensure the status quo is maintained. However, there are concerns that strengthening defense and implementing preventive military measures could be interpreted as a threat by China. This is a dilemma that all states face, increasing defense will always be interpreted as a threat and provoke retaliation. Relations between the United States and China are incredibly volatile at present and the strengthening defense and alliance with Japan can be seen as a threat, particularly with regard to Taiwan.

China and Taiwan have a long and complex relationship. Taiwan is a democratic country that essentially functions as a sovereign state, but China still claims it as territory. Taiwan's domestic politics and political tensions between the two states have intensified in recent years. As a democratic state, Taiwan is a strong ally of the United States. However, the current agreement between the United States and China is to recognize Taiwan as part of China. The status quo remains a delicate balance in which Taiwan functions as an independent state from China and is often recognized as such by its citizens, but not officially by the international community. Japan is a neighboring democratic ally of the United States and therefore geographically plays a critical role in protecting Taiwan's current state of sovereignty. The United States relies on Japan and South Korea as peacekeepers in the Indo-Pacific region due to their geographic proximity to the region and their advanced democratic governments.

Overall, the continued affirmation of democratic alliances is important for the maintenance of international relations and peace. Kishida and Biden's approaches to preserving peace in the South China Sea favor strengthening democracy in a non-violent and non-aggressive manner. However, this does not guarantee a peaceful response from China. The best solution to defuse the situation is to open these discussions to China and increase the transparency of military operations to reduce communication problems between states.