White House to host first-ever US-Philippines-Japan summit to counter China

“The leaders will advance a trilateral partnership built on deep historical ties of friendship” including a “shared vision for a free and open Indo-Pacific,” White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said on Monday local time.

Biden will later hold a separate bilateral meeting with Marcos to “reaffirm the ironclad alliance” with the Philippines, she said.

Kishida will be at the White House for a state visit the day before, which had already been announced.

Japan believes the talks will boost a “free and open international order based on the rules of law,” chief government spokesman Yoshimasa Hayashi said.

“With the Japan-US alliance as the linchpin, we believe that deepening cooperation with like-minded countries like the Philippines in a wide range of areas will be essential to maintaining the peace and prosperity of this region,” he told reporters.

01:02

Beijing accuses Manila of deliberately ramming Chinese coastguard ship in disputed waters

The US is redoubling efforts to improve long-standing ties with regional allies such as Tokyo and Manila, in an effort to counterbalance an increasingly aggressive China.

The announcement of the three-way summit came as US Secretary of State Antony Blinken was heading to Manila, a trip that the State Department said would reaffirm America’s “unwavering commitment” to the Philippines.

Japan invaded and occupied the Philippines during World War II, but the two countries have since grown closer due to trade and investment, and more recently, to counter China’s assertiveness in the region.

Biden has also increasingly turned to the three-way summit format to build US alliances.