Kishida's Joint Address to US Congress in April... Second After Abe

Image source=Reuters·Yonhap News

Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida is scheduled to deliver a speech at a joint session of the U.S. Congress during his state visit to the United States in April.

According to the Sankei Shimbun on the 24th, U.S. House Speaker Mike Johnson conveyed to the U.S. government that Prime Minister Kishida plans to speak at the joint session of the House and Senate. The speech is expected to be coordinated around April 11.

This will be the first time in about nine years that a Japanese prime minister has addressed a joint session of Congress since former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s state visit in 2015. At that time, Abe’s speech was the first by a sitting Japanese prime minister. Previously, Japanese prime ministers were not permitted to speak at joint sessions due to a tradition in the U.S. Congress that, while members would give standing ovations as a sign of highest respect, they would not allow leaders of countries that provoked the Pacific War to be honored in such events.

Kyodo News reported that Prime Minister Kishida is expected to emphasize strengthening the U.S.-Japan alliance and his commitment to contributing to world peace, while also highlighting defense policy enhancements aimed at China or North Korea and promoting strategic trilateral cooperation among the U.S., Japan, and South Korea. Kishida will hold a summit meeting in Washington D.C. during his state visit, which is by invitation from U.S. President Joe Biden.