the prime minister of Japan, Fumio Kishidareceived this Friday (5th) the Speaker of the United States House of Representatives, Nancy Pelosiwith whom he reaffirmed the “close cooperation” of the countries and blamed China for the missiles recently fired in waters in Japan’s exclusive zones.
During a breakfast held in Tokyo, the last stop of the Asian trip from Pelosithe US House Speaker and Kishida exchanged “opinions on the international situation, including the invasion of Ukraine, the situation with China and Korea and the achievement of a world without nuclear weapons”, as the Japanese premier detailed to reporters after the meeting.
Kishida spoke of Japan’s annoyance over the five ballistic missiles fired by China during military drills and called Beijing’s attitude “a serious problem for Japan’s security”.
Kishida and Pelosi also spoke about their intention to “continue to cooperate closely for peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait.”
This strait is the scene of extensive military maneuvers by Chinese troops with live fire that serve as the Asian giant’s response to Pelosi’s lightning visit to the island, which Beijing considers part of its territory.
Taiwan assessed these exercises as a “violation of its rights”, as they caused the closure of maritime and air space in six areas of the island, one of them about 20 kilometers off the coast of Kaohsiung, the main city in the south of its territory.
After the trip to Taiwan, Pelosi stopped in South Korea between last Wednesday and Thursday, until arriving in Japan, the last stop of her Asian tour.
In addition to the meeting with the Japanese prime minister, the Speaker of the US House of Representatives is expected to meet later this Friday with her Japanese counterpart, Hiroyuki Hosoda, and visit the US Embassy in Tokyo.
