The Biden administration will work closely with Israel on regional securityissues and on regional the country’s normalisation agreements, White Housenational security adviser Jake Sullivan told his Israeli counterpart,according to a statement on Sunday.
“They discussed opportunities to enhance the partnership over the comingmonths, including by building on the success of Israel’s normalizationarrangements with UAE, Bahrain, Sudan, and Morocco,” according to astatement on Sullivan’s call on Saturday with Israel’s Meir Ben Shabbat.
Sullivan also extended an invitation to begin a strategic dialogue in thenear term, the statement said.Meanwhile, new US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin on Sunday, during hisfirst phone call with his Japanese counterpart, reaffirmed America’scommitment to defending the disputed East China Sea islets known as theSenkaku in Japan, Jiji news agency reported.
Austin and Japanese Defense Minister Nobuo Kishi confirmed that Article 5of the US-Japan security treaty, which stipulates US defense obligations toJapan, covers the Senkaku Islands, Jiji said. The islets are known as theDiaoyu in China.
The defense ministers also reaffirmed their opposition to any unilateralact that would undermine Japan’s right to administer the islands, Jiji said.Japan has become increasingly concerned about Chinese activity in the EastChina Sea, including incursions into waters around the disputed islands.
U.S. Indo-Pacific Command said on Sunday a U.S. Navy strike group enteredthe South China Sea on Saturday, the same day Taiwan reported a largeincursion of Chinese bombers and fighter jets into its air defenseidentification zone near the Pratas Islands.
Meanwhile, a US aircraft carrier group led by the USS Theodore Roosevelthas entered the South China Sea to promote “freedom of the seas”, the USmilitary said on Sunday, at a time when tensions between China and Taiwanhave raised concern in Washington.
US Indo-Pacific Command said in a statement the strike group entered theSouth China Sea on Saturday, the same day Taiwan reported a large incursionof Chinese bombers and fighter jets into its air defence identificationzone in the vicinity of the Pratas Islands.The US military said the carrier strike group was in the South China Sea, alarge part of which is claimed by China, to conduct routine operations “toensure freedom of the seas, build partnerships that foster maritimesecurity”.
“After sailing through these waters throughout my 30-year career, it’sgreat to be in
the South China Sea again, conducting routine operations, promoting freedomof the seas, and reassuring allies and partners,” Rear Adm.Doug Verissimo, commander of the strike group, was quoted as saying.
“With two-thirds of the world’s trade travelling through this veryimportant region, it is vital that we maintain our presence and continue topromote the rules-based order which has allowed us all to prosper,”Verissimo said in the statement.The Theodore Roosevelt is being accompanied by the Ticonderoga-classguided-missile cruiser USS Bunker Hill, and the ArleighBurke-class guided-missile destroyers USS Russell and USS John Finn, theU.S. statement said.—Agencies