TOKYO/SYDNEY (JAPAN/AUSTRALIA) – In a bid to find support to tackle the dangerous regional clout of China, which is on the rise, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo arrived in Tokyo on Tuesday to meet with Washington’s closest Asian allies – Japan, Australia and India.
He was originally slated to visit Mongolia and South Korea. But it was cancelled after President Donald Trump was diagnosed with COVID-19. It is Pompeo’s first visit to East Asia since July last year and it comes at a time when the relations between Washington and Beijing are at their worst in decades.
During the one-day visit, he will meet foreign ministers of the Quad nations: the United States, Australia, India and Japan.
Although the US wants to build regional support against China, its Asian allies want to avoid a direct confrontation with Beijing given their trade relations.