ABOARD THE USS THEODORE ROOSEVELT (AP) — A U.S. carrier strike group led by the USS Theodore Roosevelt has held a two-day joint exercise with its allies Japan and South Korea as U.S. President Joe Biden met for talks with leaders from Japan and the Philippines at the White House. The military and diplomatic maneuvers are meant to strengthen the partners' solidarity in the face of what they see as China’s aggressive military actions in the region.
A number of U.S. and South Korean guided missile destroyers and a Japanese warship joined the drills in the disputed East China Sea, where worries about China's territorial claims are rising. The Associated Press was one of several news organizations allowed a front-row look at the drills.
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ABOARD THE USS THEODORE ROOSEVELT (AP) — A U.S. carrier strike group led by the USS Theodore Roosevelt has held a two-day joint exercise with its allies Japan and South Korea as U.S. President Joe Biden met for talks with leaders from Japan and the Philippines at the White House. The military and diplomatic maneuvers are meant to strengthen the partners' solidarity in the face of what they see as China’s aggressive military actions in the region.
Rear Adm. Christopher Alexander, Commander of Carrier Strike Group Nine led by the aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt, stresses the importance of a joint exercise on Thursday April 11, 2024, during a trilateral naval drill among the U.S., Japan and South Korea at the East China Sea. (AP Photo/Mari Yamaguchi)
A F-18E parks on the flight deck of a USS Theodore Roosevelt aircraft carrier on Thursday, April 11, 2024 during a three-day joint naval exercise by the U.S., Japanese and South Korea at the East China Sea amid tension from China and North Korea. (AP Photo/Mari Yamaguchi)
A F-18E fighter jet prepares to take off from USS Theodore Roosevelt aircraft carrier on Thursday, April 11, 2024, during a three-day joint naval exercise by the U.S., Japanese and South Korea at the East China Sea amid tension from China and North Korea. (AP Photo/Mari Yamaguchi)
A F-18E fighter jet prepares to take off from USS Theodore Roosevelt aircraft carrier on Thursday April 11, 2024, during a three-day joint naval exercise by the U.S., Japanese and South Korea at the East China Sea amid tension from China and North Korea. (AP Photo/Mari Yamaguchi)
Rear Adm. Christopher Alexander, commander of Carrier Strike Group Nine, said the three nations conducted undersea warfare exercises, maritime interdiction operations, search and rescue drills and work focused on communication and data sharing. He told journalists Thursday on the Roosevelt that these drills would help improve communication among the United States and its allies and "better prepare us for a crisis in the region.”
F/A-18E Super Hornet combat jets took off from the carrier’s flight deck, which also had anti-submarine MH-60R Seahawk helicopters. Journalists were flown more than an hour from Kadena Air Base, the hub of U.S. Pacific air power. Kadena is on Japan's southern island of Okinawa, which is home to about half of the 50,000 American troops stationed in Japan.
“It is a busy time; there is a lot going on in the world," Alexander said. "The significance of this exercise is we have three like-minded countries, three like-minded navies that believe in peace, security and stability in the western Pacific.”
In Beijing, the Chinese Foreign Ministry said its director-general of Asian affairs had met with a top Japanese Embassy official on Friday and expressed “serious concern and strong dissatisfaction” about Japan's “negative moves” during Prime Minister Fumio Kishida's meetings in Washington with Biden and Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.
That followed earlier Chinese statements that accused the U.S. and Japan of smearing China and urged them to stop undermining regional peace and stability, while saying China will “resolutely defend” its security and development interests.
The participation of Japan and South Korea in the joint exercise was another sign of improving ties between the sometimes wary neighbors. The two U.S. allies' relationship has often been strained by the memory of Japan's 35-year colonization of the Korean Peninsula. Washington has been pressing them to cooperate so the three partners can better deal with threats from China and North Korea.
This week's huge parliamentary election defeat of the governing party of South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol, who has sought better relations with Japan, could constrain his Japan-friendly efforts, but experts believe ties will remain stable.
The drills focused on improving the three nations’ joint response capability against North Korea’s increasing nuclear and missile threats, South Korea’s navy said in a statement. It said the navies conducted anti-submarine exercises to enhance their readiness against North Korean submarine threats and maritime interdiction training to practice blocking potential illegal transfers of banned weapons by the North.
The latest naval exercise is part of Biden's work to deepen security and diplomatic engagement with Indo-Pacific nations. Biden invited Kishida and Marcos to the White House for their first trilateral talks Thursday, and has declared that the U.S. defense commitment to the Pacific allies is “ironclad."
Tensions between China and the Philippines have risen over repeated clashes by the two nations’ coast guard vessels in the disputed South China Sea. Chinese coast guard ships also regularly approach disputed Japanese-controlled East China Sea islands near Taiwan.
Beijing has defended its operations in the South China Sea and blamed the United States for creating tensions. Chinese President Xi Jinping had a series of talks this week with senior officials from Vietnam, Russia and Taiwan.
The U.S.-Japan-South Korea naval exercises follow four-way drills held in the South China Sea, where Japan joined the United States, Australia and the Philippines. Participants carefully avoided mentioning China and said they were holding the exercises to safeguard a peaceful and stable Indo-Pacific.
A Chinese Defense Ministry spokesperson said Friday that China's activities in the South China Sea are “justified, lawful and beyond reproach” and accused the U.S. of flexing its muscles in the region and building up anti-China cliques.
“These acts are irresponsible and extremely dangerous,” Senior Col. Wu Qian said in a statement posted online.
An area of long-simmering disputes, the South China Sea serves a key sea lane for global trade. Concerned governments include Vietnam, Malaysia, Indonesia, Brunei and Taiwan.
This story has been corrected to say that the drills took place over two days, not three.
Rear Adm. Christopher Alexander, Commander of Carrier Strike Group Nine led by the aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt, stresses the importance of a joint exercise on Thursday April 11, 2024, during a trilateral naval drill among the U.S., Japan and South Korea at the East China Sea. (AP Photo/Mari Yamaguchi)
Rear Adm. Christopher Alexander, Commander of Carrier Strike Group Nine led by the aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt, stresses the importance of a joint exercise on Thursday April 11, 2024, during a trilateral naval drill among the U.S., Japan and South Korea at the East China Sea. (AP Photo/Mari Yamaguchi)
A F-18E parks on the flight deck of a USS Theodore Roosevelt aircraft carrier on Thursday, April 11, 2024 during a three-day joint naval exercise by the U.S., Japanese and South Korea at the East China Sea amid tension from China and North Korea. (AP Photo/Mari Yamaguchi)
A F-18E fighter jet prepares to take off from USS Theodore Roosevelt aircraft carrier on Thursday, April 11, 2024, during a three-day joint naval exercise by the U.S., Japanese and South Korea at the East China Sea amid tension from China and North Korea. (AP Photo/Mari Yamaguchi)
A F-18E fighter jet prepares to take off from USS Theodore Roosevelt aircraft carrier on Thursday April 11, 2024, during a three-day joint naval exercise by the U.S., Japanese and South Korea at the East China Sea amid tension from China and North Korea. (AP Photo/Mari Yamaguchi)
ISTANBUL (AP) — Workers and activists around the world marked May Day with protests Wednesday over the pressure of rising prices and calls for greater labor rights. Pro- Palestinian sentiments were also on display.
Police in Istanbul used tear gas and fired rubber bullets to disperse thousands of people who tried to break through a barricade and reach the main Taksim square in defiance of a ban. Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya said on social platform X at least 210 people were detained.
President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s government has long declared Taksim off-limits for demonstrations on security grounds, but the square holds symbolic value. In 1977, unidentified gunmen opened fire on a May Day celebration there, causing a stampede and killing 34 people. On Wednesday, a small group of trade union representatives lay a wreath at a monument to victims.
May Day, which falls on May 1, is observed to celebrate workers’ rights. It's also an opportunity to air economic grievances or political demands. “Tax the rich,” one banner in Germany read. “Don't touch the eight-hour workday!” another read in Sri Lanka. “I want to live, not survive,” read one in France.
In Paris, police fired tear gas as thousands of protesters marched through the French capital, seeking better pay and working conditions. Twenty-nine people were arrested. Pro-Palestinian groups and anti-Olympics activists joined the rally, chanting slogans in support for people in Gaza.
A group of protesters set makeshift Olympic rings on fire to show discontent with the Summer Games that start in less than three months. France’s unions have warned of a strike during the Games if the government does not adequately compensate people forced to work during summer holidays.
Government officials have failed to meet with union leaders, said Sophie Binet, the general secretary of the CGT union, one of France’s largest. “How do you expect it to go well if the authorities don’t respond to our simplest demand?” she said.
In Athens, several thousand protesters joined marches as labor strikes disrupted public transport across Greece. The largest union demands a return to collective bargaining after labor rights were scrapped during the 2010-18 financial crisis.
Pro-Palestinian protesters joined the rallies, waving a giant Palestinian flag as they marched past the Greek parliament. Others displayed banners in support of pro-Palestinian protesting students in the United States.
“We want to express our solidarity with students in the United States, who are facing great repression of their rights and their just demands,” said Nikos Mavrokefalos at the march. “We want to send a message that workers say no to exploitation, no to poverty, no to high prices,” he added.
In Nigeria, unions criticized government efforts to ease the cost of living and demanded bigger salary increases. Inflation is the highest in 28 years, at over 33%. In South Africa, pro-Palestinian demonstrators joined May Day events. In Kenya, President William Ruto called for an increase in the country's minimum wage.
In Lebanon, pro-Palestinian marchers mingled with workers demanding an end to a miserable economic crisis. “Politicians do not feel the pain of the worker or the economic conditions,” said one demonstrator, Abed Tabbaa. In Iraq, protesters demanded better wages, the reopening of closed factories and the end to privatization of certain businesses.
Tens of thousands Sri Lankans paraded through the capital as the country struggles through its worst economic crisis, two years after declaring bankruptcy. Discontent has grown over efforts to increase revenue by raising the price of electricity and imposing taxes on professionals and small businesses.
In South Korea's capital, thousands of protesters shouted pro-labor slogans at a rally that organizers said was meant to step up criticism of what they call anti-labor policies pursued by President Yoon Suk Yeol's conservative government.
“In the past two years under the Yoon Suk Yeol government, the lives of our laborers have plunged into despair,” Yang Kyung-soo, leader of the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions, said in a speech.
Union members criticized Yoon’s recent veto of a bill aimed at limiting companies’ rights to seek compensation for damages caused by union strikes. The government also has vowed to sternly deal with illegal strikes.
In Japan, more than 10,000 people gathered in Tokyo, demanding salary increases to set off price increases. Masako Obata, leader of the left-leaning National Confederation of Trade Unions, said dwindling wages have widened income disparities.
In Indonesia, workers demanded protections for migrant workers abroad and a minimum wage raise. They gathered amid a tight police presence, chanting slogans against the new Job Creation Law and loosened outsourcing rules.
In the Philippines, hundreds of workers and left-wing activists marched to demand wage increases and job security amid soaring food and oil prices. Riot police stopped them from getting close to the presidential palace.
Kim reported from Seoul. Associated Press journalists around the world contributed.
Members of National Trade Union Federation Pakistan take part in a May Day rally, marking International Labour Day in Karachi, Pakistan, Wednesday, May 1, 2024. Participants of the rally demand implementation of labor laws and increase in their wages. (AP Photo/Ikram Suri)
A person waves a Cuban flag during a gathering marking International Workers' Day at Jose Marti Anti-Imperialist Square in Havana, Cuba, Wednesday, May 1, 2024. (AP Photo/Ariel Ley)
Supporters of a left-wing party march, to mark the Labor Day holiday in support of workers' rights, in Warsaw, Poland, on May 1, 2024. (AP Photo/Czarek Sokolowski)
Demonstrators raise their fists as they take part in a May Day rally in Madrid, Wednesday, May 1, 2024. (AP Photo/Bernat Armangue)
Members of National People's Power, a political alliance, carry placards at a Labour Day rally in Colombo, Sri Lanka, Wednesday, May 1, 2024. (AP Photo/Eranga Jayawardena)
Protesters burn olympic rings on the pavement near a Palestinian flag during the May Day demonstration, Wednesday, May 1, 2024 in Paris. (AP Photo/Thomas Padilla)
Demonstrators participate on a May Day march, in Nuremberg, Germany, May 1, 2024. (Daniel Vogl/dpa via AP)
Protesters chant slogans outside the Greek Parliament during a May Day rally in Athens , on Wednesday, May 1, 2024. Palestinian and pro-Palestinian protesters joined the rallies, one group chanting "Victory to the Intifada" as they carried a giant Palestinian flag past parliament. Others displayed banners in support of protesting students in the United States. (AP Photo/Petros Giannakouris)
A protester wrapped in a Palestinian flag attends the May Day demonstration, Wednesday, May 1, 2024 in Paris. (AP Photo/Thomas Padilla)
Union members clash with Turkish anti riot police officers as they march during Labor Day celebrations in Istanbul, Turkey, Wednesday, May 1, 2024. Police in Istanbul used tear gas and fired rubber bullets to disperse thousands of people attempting to break through a barricade and reach the city's main city's main square, Taksim, in defiance of a government ban on celebrating May 1 Labor Day at the landmark location. (AP Photo/Khalil Hamra)
Supporters of the Lebanese Communist party take a selfie, as they march during a demonstration to mark International Labor Day or May Day, in Beirut, Wednesday, May 1, 2024. Despite the tense situation and ongoing clashes on Lebanon's border with Israel over the past seven months, hundreds of protesters marched through Beirut's streets to mark International Workers' Day. (AP Photo/Hussein Malla)
Supporters of the Lebanese Communist party, wave a giant Palestinian flag, as they march during a demonstration to mark International Labor Day or May Day, in Beirut, Wednesday, May 1, 2024. Despite the tense situation and ongoing clashes on Lebanon's border with Israel over the past seven months, hundreds of protesters marched through Beirut's streets. (AP Photo/Hussein Malla)
South African President Cyril Ramaphosa, centre, attends a May Day rally in Cape Town, South Africa, Wednesday, May, 1, 2024. (AP Photo/Nardus Engelbrecht)
Union members clash with Turkish anti riot police officers as they march during Labor Day celebrations in Istanbul, Turkey, Wednesday, May 1, 2024. Police in Istanbul used tear gas and fired rubber bullets to disperse thousands of people attempting to break through a barricade and reach the city's main city's main square, Taksim, in defiance of a government ban on celebrating May 1 Labor Day at the landmark location. (AP Photo/Khalil Hamra)
Workers hold banner during a May Day rally in Jakarta, Indonesia, Wednesday, May 1, 2024. Thousands of workers urged the government to raise minimum wages and improve working condition. (AP Photo/Achmad Ibrahim)
A worker shouts slogans during a May Day rally in Jakarta, Indonesia, Wednesday, May 1, 2024. Thousands of workers urged the government to raise minimum wages and improve working condition. (AP Photo/Achmad Ibrahim)
Workers march during a May Day rally in Jakarta, Indonesia, Wednesday, May 1, 2024. Thousands of workers urged the government to raise minimum wages and improve working condition. (AP Photo/Achmad Ibrahim)
Russia's Emergency Situations Ministry female cadets march during a rehearsal for the Victory Day military parade which will take place at Dvortsovaya (Palace) Square on May 9 to celebrate 79 years after the victory in World War II in St. Petersburg, Russia, Tuesday, April 30, 2024. (AP Photo/Dmitri Lovetsky)
A pigeon passes by during a rehearsal for the Victory Day military parade which will take place at Dvortsovaya (Palace) Square on May 9 to celebrate 79 years after the victory in World War II in St. Petersburg, Russia, Tuesday, April 30, 2024. (AP Photo/Dmitri Lovetsky)
Servicewomen march during a rehearsal for the Victory Day military parade which will take place at Dvortsovaya (Palace) Square on May 9 to celebrate 79 years after the victory in World War II in St. Petersburg, Russia, Tuesday, April 30, 2024. (AP Photo/Dmitri Lovetsky)
Honour guard soldiers march during a rehearsal for the Victory Day military parade which will take place at Dvortsovaya (Palace) Square on May 9 to celebrate 79 years after the victory in World War II in St. Petersburg, Russia, Tuesday, April 30, 2024. (AP Photo/Dmitri Lovetsky)
Workers march during a May Day rally in Jakarta, Indonesia, Wednesday, May 1, 2024. Thousands of workers urged the government to raise minimum wages and improve working condition. (AP Photo/Achmad Ibrahim)
People walk towards the site of a May Day rally in Tokyo, Wednesday, May 1, 2024. (AP Photo/Hiro Komae)
Taiwanese workers hold slogans reading "Congress amended the law to support workers' rights" and ''The regime has no honeymoon'' during a May Day rally in Taipei, Taiwan, Wednesday, May 1, 2024. Thousands of protesters from different labor groups protest on the street to ask for labor rights and interests. (AP Photo/Chiang Ying-ying)
Members of the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions shout slogans during a rally on May Day in Seoul, South Korea, Wednesday, May 1, 2024. Workers, activists and others in Asian capitals took to the streets on Wednesday to mark May Day with protests over rising prices and governments' labor polices and calls for greater labor rights. (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon)
Members of the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions gather to attend a rally on May Day in Seoul, South Korea, Wednesday, May 1, 2024. Workers, activists and others in Asian capitals took to the streets on Wednesday to mark May Day with protests over rising prices and governments' labor polices and calls for greater labor rights. (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon)
Anti riot police officers stand guard blocking the route to protesters as Union members march during Labor Day celebrations in Istanbul, Turkey, Wednesday, May 1, 2024. Police in Istanbul detained dozens of people who tried to reach the city's main square, Taksim, in defiance of a government ban on celebrating May 1 Labor Day at the landmark location. (AP Photo/Emrah Gurel)
Anti riot police officers stand guard blocking the route to protesters as Union members march during Labor Day celebrations in Istanbul, Turkey, Wednesday, May 1, 2024. Police in Istanbul detained dozens of people who tried to reach the city's main square, Taksim, in defiance of a government ban on celebrating May 1 Labor Day at the landmark location. (AP Photo/Emrah Gurel)
Union members scuffle with Turkish police officers as they march during Labor Day celebrations in Istanbul, Turkey, Wednesday, May 1, 2024. Police in Istanbul detained dozens of people who tried to reach the city's main square, Taksim, in defiance of a government ban on celebrating May 1 Labor Day at the landmark location. (AP Photo/Khalil Hamra)
A union member scuffles with plainclothes policemen as he marches with others during Labor Day celebrations in Istanbul, Turkey, Wednesday, May 1, 2024. (AP Photo/Khalil Hamra)
A man with a flag of a local workers group waits for a May Day rally to start in Tokyo, Wednesday, May 1, 2024. (AP Photo/Hiro Komae)
People clap hands as they hear a speaker during a May Day rally in Tokyo, Wednesday, May 1, 2024. (AP Photo/Hiro Komae)
People walk towards the site of a May Day rally in Tokyo, Wednesday, May 1, 2024. (AP Photo/Hiro Komae)
Masako Obata, president of Japan's National Confederation of Trade Unions, also known as Zenroren, speaks during a May Day rally in Tokyo, Wednesday, May 1, 2024. (AP Photo/Hiro Komae)
People listen to a speaker during a May Day rally in Tokyo, Wednesday, May 1, 2024. (AP Photo/Hiro Komae)
Participants march after a May Day rally in Tokyo, Wednesday, May 1, 2024. (AP Photo/Hiro Komae)
Participants march after a May Day rally in Tokyo, Wednesday, May 1, 2024. (AP Photo/Hiro Komae)
People listen to a speaker during a May Day rally in Tokyo, Wednesday, May 1, 2024. (AP Photo/Hiro Komae)
Participants prepare for a march after a May Day rally in Tokyo, Wednesday, May 1, 2024. (AP Photo/Hiro Komae)
Participants march after a May Day rally in Tokyo, Wednesday, May 1, 2024. (AP Photo/Hiro Komae)
Members of the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions gather to attend a rally on May Day in Seoul, South Korea, Wednesday, May 1, 2024. (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon)
Members of the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions gather to attend a rally on May Day in Seoul, South Korea, Wednesday, May 1, 2024. (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon)
Members of the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions gather to attend a rally on May Day in Seoul, South Korea, Wednesday, May 1, 2024. (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon)
Filipino activists march towards the U.S. Embassy during a protest to mark International Labor Day in Manila, Philippines on Wednesday, May 1, 2024. Hundreds of Filipino workers from various labor groups took to the streets to mark Labor Day and demand a wage increase and job security amid soaring food and oil prices. (AP Photo/Basilio Sepe)
Policemen try to block activists as they tried to march towards the U.S. Embassy during a protest to mark International Labor Day in Manila, Philippines on Wednesday, May 1, 2024. Hundreds of Filipino workers from various labor groups took to the streets to mark Labor Day and demand a wage increase and job security amid soaring food and oil prices. (AP Photo/Basilio Sepe)
Filipino workers carry streamers and posters during a protest to mark International Labor Day near the presidential palace in Manila, Philippines on Wednesday, May 1, 2024. Hundreds of Filipino workers from various labor groups took to the streets to mark Labor Day and demand a wage increase and job security amid soaring food and oil prices. (AP Photo/Basilio Sepe)
A man carries a poster during a protest to mark International Labor Day near the presidential palace in Manila, Philippines on Wednesday, May 1, 2024. Hundreds of Filipino workers from various labor groups took to the streets to mark Labor Day and demand a wage increase and job security amid soaring food and oil prices. (AP Photo/Basilio Sepe)
Filipino workers carry streamers and posters during a protest to mark International Labor Day near the presidential palace in Manila, Philippines on Wednesday, May 1, 2024. Hundreds of Filipino workers from various labor groups took to the streets to mark Labor Day and demand a wage increase and job security amid soaring food and oil prices. (AP Photo/Basilio Sepe)
