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Countering China: US, Japan and India push for open Asia
BUENOS AIRES, Dec 1, 2018 (BSS/AFP) – The leaders of the United States,
Japan and India met jointly Friday for the first time and called for open
navigation in Asia, a show of unity with China clearly in mind.
The three right-leaning leaders — US President Donald Trump, Indian Prime
Minister Narendra Modi and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe — met on the
sidelines of the summit of the G20 economic powers in Buenos Aires.
With the meeting lasting around 15 minutes, the three-way summit was more
about symbolism than planning strategy, but it comes as all three share
concerns on China’s rising clout.
Japan and India both have longstanding territorial feuds with their
neighbor, while Trump has been pressing China hard on trade and reiterating
concerns over Beijing’s assertive posture in the dispute-ridden South China
Sea.
“Japan, the US and India share fundamental values and strategic interests,”
Abe said.
“By having three of us working together, we’ll bring more prosperity and
more stability in the region, as well as globally,” he said.
Modi noted that Japan, America and India made out the acronym “Jai” —
Hindi for “long live.”
White House spokeswoman Sarah Sanders said in a statement that the summit
“reaffirmed the importance of the free and open Indo-Pacific vision for
global stability and prosperity, and pledged to deepen trilateral
cooperation.”
The Trump administration has increasingly spoken of a “free and open Indo-
Pacific,” a catchphrase long favored by Abe as he insists that all of Asia
remain open to navigation and trade.
But Modi and Abe also both met separately with Chinese President Xi
Jinping. Trump is set to meet Xi on Saturday for talks focused on trade
disputes.
India, despite decades of territorial disputes with China, has historically
shied away from joining alliances with major powers.
And tensions have also been easing between Japan and China, with Abe in
October paying the first official visit in seven years by a Japanese premier
to Beijing.
BSS/AFP/SSS/0904 hrs