In a written reply to a question by Yomiuri Shimbun, US President Barack Obama stated for the first time by an incumbent US President that the Senkakus Islands in the Okinawa Prefecture are subject to Article 5 of the Japan- US Security Treaty.

Writing in the official English-language 'China Daily' on April 23, Fu Mengzi, Vice President of the China Institute of Contemporary International Relations (CICIR), warned that during his visit to Japan as part of his 4-nation tour US President Obama would try to integrate US allies in the region to "remove all obstacles that could de-rail it's pivot to Asia".  He asserted that there is "little doubt the US rebalancing strategy is aimed at China because despite vowing not to take sides in the East China Sea and South China Sea disputes, it has been backing Japan and the Philippines".