Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida’s official visit to Washington last week — the first such visit by a sitting Japanese leader since 2015 — underscored the extraordinary level of strategic alignment in the alliance in the face of regional and global challenges.
The leaders sought to stress the enduring character of the alliance and their own steps to strengthen it ahead of possible political transitions in the fall. They also emphasized efforts to work with additional partners like the Philippines, whose president, Ferdinand Marcos Jr., joined the leaders for a trilateral summit on April 11.
During the week, the U.S. Chamber hosted both Prime Minister Kishida and President Marcos for high-level meetings with business executives, highlighting the leaders’ enthusiasm for engaging with the private sector.
The U.S. Chamber and its U.S.-Japan Business Council (USJBC) were pleased with the more than 70 deliverables announced during the trilateral, which covered not only defense and security but also critical areas in economic security and innovation, including energy, life sciences, financial services, advanced technologies, and initiatives under the U.S.-Japan Tourism Year 2024.
The breadth of outcomes underlined the wide-ranging scope of the current U.S.-Japan relationship and their shared priorities and vision for the Indo-Pacific region and the globe. Here are insights from Prime Minister Kishida's visit:
Energy and Infrastructure
- The countries aim to advance and expand the existing U.S.-Japan Climate Partnership, including through a new high-level bilateral dialogue to align their respective domestic efforts to achieve energy transition goals. The dialogue will also promote “complementary and innovative clean energy supply chains” and strengthen their industrial competitiveness.
- Energy companies can support the dialogue through targeted advocacy on key business issues as it develops further, as well as engagement with new partnerships announced on offshore wind and fusion energy.
- In the joint statement, the U.S. said it “remains unwavering” in supporting the energy security of Japan and other allies, “including its ability to predictably supply LNG” while accelerating energy transition efforts. The USJBC, in coordination with its U.S. Chamber colleagues, has been pressing the Biden administration to reverse its decision to halt reviews of new LNG export license applications to non-free trade agreement countries. The U.S., however, did not indicate during the summit when the pause might be lifted.
- On infrastructure, the leaders highlighted that Japan’s bullet train technology could be used in Texas’s project to connect Houston and Dallas by high-speed rail. The United States and Japan also continue to advance regional infrastructure initiatives around the world, including the Luzon Economic Corridor project with the Philippines and the Lobito Corridor railway project in South-Central Africa.
Advanced Technology
- President Biden and Prime Minister Kishida announced further cooperative efforts to develop and protect advanced technologies for both economic and national security purposes, with a focus on cybersecurity and AI, in addition to emerging defense technologies. These advancements in the global technology competition sphere offer an opportunity for further private-sector investment and input.
- A new cybersecurity working group will develop an action plan for mutual recognition of cybersecurity labeling schemes, providing an opportunity for direct input from industry experts. The United States and Japan also heralded landmark commercial investments by U.S. and Japanese companies, including Microsoft, Amazon, Google, Toyota, and Daiichi Sankyo, as well as new AI and quantum computing R&D partnerships.
- Semiconductors were also at the center of advanced technology discussions, with both public and private cooperation remaining strong. Both governments will continue to support private-sector collaboration and development, especially in next-generation semiconductors and advanced packaging, including by bringing together U.S. and Japanese semiconductor firms to join technical training workshops led by the U.S. Department of Labor.
Healthcare Innovation and Life Sciences
- The United States and Japan have committed to further supporting health security and sustainable health systems with the cooperation of the private sector. Specifically, following on successful private-led roundtables, they will launch a U.S.-Japan biotechnology innovation and healthcare “discussion” that can incorporate input from the private sector on addressing shared challenges and opportunities in biotech.
Financial Services and Investment
- With the U.S. and Japanese financial sectors leading the way, the governments have committed to further measures to support financial stability and encourage more cross-border investment. They will convene a roundtable in late 2024 with stakeholders from both the financial sector and regulatory authorities on reform priorities and the integration of capital markets, among other topics.
- Sustainable investment, risk management, and corporate value creation will continue to be central areas for public-private collaboration through additional dialogues and roundtables. The United States and Japan intend to jointly host one or more roundtables by the end of 2025 to promote sustainable value creation and connect companies with investment opportunities.
Travel, Tourism, and Transportation
- The countries highlighted the U.S.-Japan Tourism Year 2024, as well as the 2025 World Expo in Osaka, and emphasized Airbnb’s $1 million contribution to an International Visitors Leadership Program to bring tourism professionals from Japan to study rural tourism in the United States.
Read the full United States-Japan Joint Leaders’ Statement here.
About the authors
Tomoko Hosaka Mullaney
Tomoko Hosaka Mullaney is Executive Director of the U.S.-Japan Business Council (USJBC) at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce.
