President Joe Biden reasserted the United States’ “unshakeable” pledge to defend Japan and South Korea on Wednesday after meeting the leaders of both allies on the sidelines of the NATO summit in Madrid.
Biden, Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, and South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol focused during their meeting on threats from North Korea, the White House said.
“President Biden underscored the United States’ unshakable commitment to the defense of both Japan and the Republic of Korea,” the White House said in a statement.
They discussed “enhancing” cooperation and condemned North Korea’s development of “unlawful weapons of mass destruction and ballistic missile programs.”
For both Asian leaders, it was the first time their countries have been represented at a NATO summit, with the transatlantic alliance increasingly eying threats from China.