The move comes ahead of Prime Minister Fumio Kishida's official visit to the US in April.

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-68662465?xtor=AL-72-%5Bpartner%5D-%5Bbbc.news.twitter%5D-%5Bheadline%5D-%5Bnews%5D-%5Bbizdev%5D-%5Bisapi%5D&at_link_type=web_link&at_ptr_name=twitter&at_link_origin=BBCWorld&at_campaign=Social_Flow&at_format=link&at_bbc_team=editorial&at_medium=social&at_link_id=BB4CA0EE-EB28-11EE-B6A0-70FF4B3AC5C4&at_campaign_type=owned