Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, who will soon step down, is finalizing plans to visit the United States at the end of September for the United Nations (UN) General Assembly and possibly a meeting with North American president-elect Joe Biden, the Yomiuri newspaper reported this Saturday.
The visit could last several days and begin on September 22, the report said, citing multiple government sources.
In response to a Reuters request for comment, Japan’s Foreign Ministry said: “Nothing has been decided yet.”
On Wednesday, Kishida dropped out of the leadership race of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party. Thus, he will step down as prime minister when his term as party leader ends at the end of September.
The party’s election date has not yet been set. According to the daily, it could be on September 20, in which case Kishida would have to speak at the General Assembly after the Japanese parliament, where the party has a majority, chooses his replacement.
The paper said some in the Japanese government believe it is better if Kishida’s successor does not have close ties to Biden, who will leave office in January.
Biden, who withdrew from the US presidential election in November, was replaced as the Democratic Party’s candidate by Vice President Kamala Harris last month. He is pitted against Republican candidate former President Donald Trump.
