Japan’s Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said his country will closely cooperate with the United States to counter regional threats posed by China and North Korea, the Foreign Ministry said on Friday, following Kishida’s first meeting with the new U.S. ambassador to Japan. During the meeting with newly-appointed ambassador Rahm Emanuel, the two officials reportedly discussed China’s growing military assertiveness n the region and North Korea’s latest missile tests. Kishida expressed confidence in Emanuel’s ability to strengthen the two nations’ partnership, referring to the ambassadorship as “the ironclad bond of the Japan-U.S. alliance,” the ministry said. “I pledged to the prime minister that I will wholeheartedly work every day on behalf of the ideals of the alliance,” Emanuel told reporters after the talks. Prior to meeting Kishida, the new envoy met with Japanese Foreign Minister Hayashi Yoshimasa on Tuesday and reaffirmed that “the United States is fully committed to working with …