Washington —

US President Joe Biden will host Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. at a White House summit aimed at strengthening trilateral maritime cooperation in the South China Sea, a major step to counter Beijing.

The United States and its two Asian allies are scheduled to hold the first such meeting on Thursday. It’s part of Biden’s strategy to consolidate existing bilateral alliances into broader “mini-multilateral alliances” to expand U.S. influence in Asia.

The focus of the United States, Japan and the Philippines is freedom of navigation in the South China Sea. Last year, Biden held similar meetings with Japan and South Korea to address threats from North Korea.

Manila is keen to strengthen trilateral maritime cooperation, a plan for joint naval patrols by three countries, a move that could trigger a strong reaction from Beijing.

“Joint patrols are something we have discussed extensively with Japan and the United States,” Philippine Ambassador to the United States Jose Manuel Romualdez told reporters at a news conference last week. “I think we’re hopeful that this will happen soon.”

The White House declined to confirm such plans, other than to reiterate that leaders would have much to discuss at the meeting.

“Certainly, tensions in the South China Sea are not going away,” national security spokesman John Kirby said in response to a question from VOA at a White House press briefing on Thursday. “This was an issue raised by the president during his phone call with President Xi [Jinping of China] Just a few days ago. “

Pentagon Press Secretary Pat Ryder also refused to confirm the news. He only told Voice of America that the goal of the trilateral efforts in the South China Sea is to “ensure that the Indo-Pacific region remains free and open and that the entire region is safe and stable.”

However, “it is widely expected” that joint naval patrols will be announced at the summit, said Gregory Poulin, director of the Southeast Asia Program and the Asia Maritime Transparency Initiative at the Center for Strategic and International Studies. He told VOA that trilateral naval patrols are “obviously the next step” as the Philippines increases naval activity with regional partners such as the United States, Japan and Australia.

The meeting and expected announcement come amid heightened tensions in the South China Sea, where Chinese coast guard vessels have deployed water cannons against Philippine ships for weeks to block supply missions to Second Thomas Shoal.

Philippine soldiers have been guarding a wrecked ship on the shoal since 1999 to assert the country’s claim to the Spratly Islands in the South China Sea.

The Philippines was an ally of the United States in 1951 mutual defense treatymeaning skirmishes between Manila and Beijing over the Spratly Islands are a problem for Washington.

“While we are concerned about Taiwan for obvious reasons, the potential for conflict between the United States and China in the South China Sea remains greater,” Paulin told VOA. “The ceiling could be lower; we will not escalate An all-out war in the South China Sea. But lower-level military conflict is a troubling possibility.”

Japanese characters are more powerful

The South China Sea is a vital conduit for Japan’s global supply chain, a reaffirming factor for Tokyo as Washington takes a stronger military role in the region.

“People have huge expectations for Japan,” said Shihoko Goto, director of the Indo-Pacific Program at the Wilson Center.

She told VOA that Tokyo is “central to regional security” given its participation in two trilateral organizations as well as the Quadrilateral Strategic Security Dialogue (also known as the “Quad”) between Australia, India, Japan and the United States.

For Kishida, the summit will be an opportunity for Japan to once again flex its diplomatic muscles as it works alongside its most powerful ally, Washington.

Yuki Tatsumi, co-director of the East Asia Program, said Kishida hopes to demonstrate the transformation of Japan’s bilateral alliance with Washington into “a global partnership that is the cornerstone of the international liberal order” that is conducive to peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific region. Director of the Japan Program at the Stimson Center.

She told VOA that key outcomes include a modernized coalition command and control plan and a Defense Industry Cooperation Advisory Agency plan.

Japan has been a pillar of various U.S. regional alliances and partnerships in the region. Ahead of the summit, Tokyo and Manila have been negotiating a reciprocal access agreement that would enhance joint military operations and training.

America lags behind in building prosperity

While many analysts applaud Biden’s strong and coordinated security approach in the region, they say Washington lags behind Beijing in building regional prosperity.

“We haven’t seen that much leadership on the economic side,” Goto said. “It’s going to be something that’s in greater demand.”

In a previous meeting with Biden, Kishida reiterated Japan’s call for Washington to join the 2018 Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership.

The 11-nation bloc is one of the world’s largest free trade areas, a reincarnation of the Trans-Pacific Partnership, which was pushed by then-President Barack Obama and then-Prime Minister Shinzo Abe in 2015 Free trade agreement.

Then-President Donald Trump withdrew from the TPP in 2017.

Kishida and Biden are also likely to discuss Nippon Steel’s proposed acquisition of U.S. Steel. The potential deal has become embroiled in protectionist campaign rhetoric ahead of the US presidential election in November.

Biden considers steel critical to national security and has said the company should remain domestically owned. His potential opponent, Trump, has pledged to block the $14 billion deal if he is re-elected.

In addition to the trilateral, Biden will pay an official visit to Kishida on Wednesday, whom he last met at the G7 summit in Hiroshima. He will meet separately with Marcos on Thursday, a repeat of the Philippine leader’s visit to the White House last May.

Analysts said the frequent meetings with leaders underscored Biden’s desire for the United States to remain a Pacific power, even as the president focuses on conflicts in Ukraine and Gaza.

Kara Babb contributed to this report.