Countries & Regions
Telephone Conference between Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and U.S. Vice President Joseph R. Biden
On December 12th, from 10:40 p.m. for approximately 55 minutes, Mr. Shinzo Abe, Prime Minister of Japan, held a telephone conference with the Honorable Joseph R. Biden, Vice President of the United States of America. The outline of the conference is as follows.
1. Vice President Biden expressed his gratitude towards Prime Minister Abe for the warm reception during his visit to Japan, and also gave an explanation on his consecutive visits to China and the ROK.
2. The Prime Minister thanked the Vice President for reiterating during his visit to China that the United States has deep concerns about China’s announcement of the establishment of the Air Defense Identification Zone in the East China Sea and will not recognize it, and that he urged the Chinese side to address the dangers its announcement has created. Prime Minister Abe and Vice President Biden reaffirmed that both countries have been taking a unified response to this problem based on a strong Japan-U.S. Alliance, and that they will continue to closely coordinate on this matter.
3. Vice President Biden stated that having improved relations between Japan and the ROK is in the interest of the United States. Prime Minister Abe thanked the Vice President for his work to support Japan-ROK relations and explained that Japan will continue to work on the relationship with the ROK from a broader viewpoint.
4. The Prime Minister and the Vice President also exchanged opinions on the issue of TPP.