President Joe Biden on Wednesday called close US ally Japan “xenophobic” at a Washington, D.C., fundraiser, just weeks after lauding the US-Japan alliance at a state dinner.

President Joe Biden has called Japan and India “xenophobic” countries that do not welcome immigrants, lumping the two with adversaries China and Russia as he tried to explain the four countries’ economic circumstances and contrasted them with the U.

US President Joe Biden has called Japan and India "xenophobic", grouping them together with Russia and China as countries that "don't want immigrants". His criticism of Japan comes just weeks after he called the US-Japan alliance "unbreakable" during a state visit from Prime Minister Fumio Kishida.