U.S. House of Representatives Speaker Kevin McCarthy is making arrangements to travel to Japan in early September to meet Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and other officials, making it his first visit to the Asian country since assuming the position, diplomatic sources said Sunday.
McCarthy is expected to affirm through a series of meetings in Tokyo, including with his counterpart Hiroyuki Hosoda, the two countries' cooperation in maintaining the rules-based international order amid concerns over China's assertive behavior and Russia's ongoing invasion of Ukraine, according to the sources.
McCarthy, who was elected in January, will also attend a meeting of parliament speakers from the Group of Seven industrialized nations, during which they are likely to condemn Russia's military aggression and discuss collaboration among their legislature bodies to strengthen democracy, according to the sources.
Ahead of the Republican's visit to Tokyo, Hosoda will travel to the United States and meet with McCarthy in Washington later this month, his first trip there since becoming the speaker of Japan's House of Representatives in November 2021.
During his trip, Hosoda intends to forge a stronger partnership with the United States as part of efforts to counter attempts to change the status quo unilaterally by China and Russia, according to the sources.
