Biden Arrives In Japan For Quad Summit Amid Protests, Heightened Security - Reports

TOKYO (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 22nd May, 2022) US President Joe Biden arrived in Tokyo, where he will hold a meeting with Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and attend the Quad leaders summit, Kyodo news agency reported on Sunday.

According to Kyodo, a government plane with the US leader, who had just finished his visit to South Korea, landed at the Yokota Air Base in Tokyo. Japanese Foreign Minister Hayashi Yoshimasa and US Ambassador to Japan Rahm Emanuel met Biden on the tarmac.

The meeting between the US and Japanese leaders is scheduled for Monday. The main topic of the talks will be the strengthening of the US-Japan alliance against the backdrop of the Ukrainian conflict and China's increasing presence in the Indo-Pacific region. Washington will also publicly reaffirm its commitment to assisting Japan in the area of security.

Japan is also expected to announce an increase in defense spending at NATO level to 2% of GDP from the current 1.

24% of GDP, Japanese media say.

The Quad Summit, an informal strategic dialogue between the United States, Japan, Australia and India, will take place on Tuesday.

Ahead of Biden's visit and the summit, Tokyo police have deployed record 18,000 police officers to ensure the leaders' safety. Special attention will be paid to major stations, airports and the US embassy in Tokyo. According to the NHK broadcaster, the police have been put on high alert to prevent terrorist attacks, employing such measures as using dogs to detect explosives during patrols and keeping an emergency response team on standby.

Over 700 people took to the streets of Tokyo on Sunday afternoon to protest Biden's visit and the upcoming Quad Summit, claiming the US-led regional economic initiative, the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework (IPEF), and other proposed alliances have no visible benefits for the participating countries apart for the US, Xinhua news agency reported.