US President Joe Biden and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida unveil the biggest ever upgrade in US-Japan defense ties during a lavish White House state visit aimed at countering a rising China. "This is the most significant upgrade in our alliance since it was first established," Biden tells a press conference with Kishida in the White House Rose Garden, while insisting that the military upgrade in China's backyard alliance is "purely defensive" and "not aimed at any one nation or a threat to the region." The Japanese leader meanwhile calls during the press conference for "peace and stability" across the Taiwan Straits. TO COMPLETE VIDI34P27GN_EN, VIDI34P33WC_EN, VIDI34P64WU_EN IMAGES AND SOUNDBITES