(24 May 2022)
RESTRICTION SUMMARY:
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Tokyo - 24 May 2022
1. Japan's Prime Minister Fumio Kishida welcoming US President Joe Biden
HEADLINE: Biden, leaders of Japan, India and Australia meet
ANNOTATION: President Joe Biden opened his last day in Asia on Tuesday by meeting with the Prime Ministers of Japan, India and Australia.
2. Biden, Kishida, Modi and Albanese greet each other in front of flags
ANNOTATION: Biden, Japan's Fumio Kishida, and India's Narendra Modi welcomed Australia's Anthony Albanese, who was sworn in on Monday.
ANNOTATION: Albanese told his fellow Quad leaders he was dedicated to the group's mission to maintain a free and open Indo-Pacific.
3. Wide of Biden, Kishida, Modi and Albanese in front of flags
4. Pan of Albanese, Biden, Kishida and Modi
ANNOTATION: Biden called Russia's war on Ukraine 'a dark hour in our shared history.' Kishida said 'we cannot let the same thing happen in the Indo-Pacific region.'
ANNOTATION: India's Modi did not address the issue in his public remarks as the summit began. India has not imposed sanctions or even condemned Russia.
STORYLINE:
US President Joe Biden opened his last day in Asia on Tuesday by holding talks with a trio of Indo-Pacific leaders that includes Australia's new prime minister on his first full day on the job and India's Narendra Modi, with whom differences persist over how to respond to Russia's invasion of Ukraine.
Biden, Modi and Japan's Fumio Kishida launched the Quad summit by welcoming Australia's Anthony Albanese to the club and expressing awe at his determination to join the informal security coalition by rushing to Tokyo immediately after being sworn in on Monday.
“I don’t know how you’re doing it," Biden told Albanese. The U.S. president joked that it would be OK if the new premier happened to fall sleep during the meeting.
Turning serious, Biden said the leaders were “navigating through a dark hour in our shared history” because of Russia's war on Ukraine. He added that it was ”more than just a European issue, it’s a global issue.”
Kishida, too, took note of Russia's aggression and added: “We cannot let the same thing happen in the Indo-Pacific region.”
Modi, whose response to the Ukraine situation has disappointed Washington, did not address the issue in his public remarks as the summit got under way.
Biden will meet separately with Albanese and with Modi after the four-way gathering of the security group known as the Quad.
The partnership has become increasingly relevant as Biden has moved to adjust U.S. foreign policy to put greater focus on the region and to counter China's rise as an economic and security power. He held bilateral talks with summit host Kishida on Monday.
Albanese told his fellow Quad leaders he was dedicated to the group's mission to maintain a free and open Indo-Pacific.
“We have had a change of government in Australia, but Australia’s commitment to the Quad has not changed and will not change,” Albanese said.
Looming over the Quad leaders' talks is Biden's blunt statement on Monday that the U.S. would intervene militarily if China were to invade Taiwan, saying the burden to protect Taiwan is “even stronger" after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
The White House insists that Biden’s unusually forceful comments about Taiwan did not amount to a shift in U.S. policy toward the self-ruled island that China claims as its own.
Biden has asked Modi not to accelerate the buying of Russian oil as the U.S. and other allies look to squeeze Moscow’s energy income.
The U.S. president has been making his case to Modi for weeks.
Clients are reminded:
Find out more about AP Archive: [ Ссылка ]
Twitter: [ Ссылка ]
Facebook: [ Ссылка ]
Instagram: [ Ссылка ]
You can license this story through AP Archive: [ Ссылка ]
