U.S. President Joe Biden called the U.S-South Korea alliance "a lynchpin of peace, stability, and prosperity” during a visit Friday to a Samsung Electronics semiconductor complex as he seeks to bolster supply chains that reduce reliance on China.
"I’ve just seen how this plant makes the most advanced semiconductor chips in the world,” Biden said following a tour of the facility, his first stop after landing outside Seoul to start a five-day visit to South Korea and Japan.
During the trip, Biden’s first to Asia as president, he’s meeting with regional leaders in a bid to firm up support for helping Ukraine fend off Russia’s invasion and countering security threats posed by China and North Korea, which may conduct its first nuclear test since 2017 with Biden nearby.