Japan Denies Biden’s Claims of Being ‘Xenophobic’
President Joe Biden mentioned that Japan, along with three other countries, was experiencing economic challenges due to their reluctance to accept immigrants.
The Japanese embassy responded on Friday to President Biden’s recent remarks categorizing Japan, among other countries, as “xenophobic,” calling his comments “unfortunate.”
During a Washington fundraising event on May 1, President Biden grouped U.S. allies Japan and India along with U.S. adversaries China and Russia, attributing their economic struggles to their rejection of immigrants.
“Think about it. Why is China facing such economic challenges? Why is Japan struggling? Why is Russia? Why is India? Because they resist immigrants. They are xenophobic,” he added.
The Japanese embassy refuted his comments, stating that it was “unfortunate that some of the comments were not based on an accurate understanding of Japan’s policies,” as per Politico.
“We have raised this point to the U.S. government and explained Japan’s positions and policies once again,” the embassy informed the news outlet.
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White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre later clarified that the president’s intention was to convey a broader message that the United States is “a nation of immigrants.”
Japan acknowledged the U.S. clarification that President Biden’s comment did not aim to undermine the importance and longevity of the Japan-U.S. relationship.
These comments follow Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida’s official visit to Washington in early April, where the leaders discussed enhancing cooperation in defense, security, and other areas.
The White House announced that the two nations’ militaries will collaborate with a joint command structure and, together with Australia, will establish a new air missile defense system.
The U.S. and its allies, including Japan, have been strengthening their military capabilities to counter what they perceive as a growing threat from China in the South China Sea and the East China Sea.
“When I meet other world leaders, I say, ‘Would you trade places with China? Would you trade places with their problems?’ They’ve got a population that is more people in retirement than working,” he said. “They’re xenophobic—nobody else coming in. They’ve got real problems.”
Eva Fu and Reuters contributed to this report.
