Statement by Kengo Sakurada, Chairman of Keizai Doyukai
on Result of U.S. Presidential Election

November 8, 2020

Kengo Sakurada
Chairman, Keizai Doyukai

PDF

1. Former Vice President Joe Biden is projected to secure the victory in the presidential election that went down to the wire. We hope to see the domestic post-election disruptions calm down quickly going forward, leading to a smooth power transition to a new U.S. administration. Meanwhile, we request Prime Minister Suga to build a personal trust relationship with the president-elect at an early stage.
2. Through this presidential election, deep-rooted issues in the United States seem to have surfaced at a stroke, such as domestic divide and wavering faith in democracy. Furthermore, there are other issues mounting and their outlook is unclear--the COVID-19 response, recovery of damaged economy, and tensions with China, to name a few. We have a hope that President-elect Biden will manage to make a steady step forward to launching his administration in next January, by aiming for progress in resolving those issues, while ensuring domestic unity and stability.
3. Whoever leads the U.S. administration next year, U.S.-Japan relations remain the cornerstone of Japanese diplomacy. The COVID-19 response, creation of data/digital society, the climate change issue, and building of regional order such as a free and open Indo-Pacific--these are a few of the many issues the U.S. and Japan should be jointly responsible for. We believe that it is important for the leaders of the two countries to strengthen their ties further, while always looking at shared interests and challenges.

Japanese version