The Japanese government is considering an official visit by Prime Minister Kishida Fumio to the United States in the first half of April.

Government sources say the Japanese and US administrations are planning a bilateral summit on April 10. They say arrangements are also underway for Kishida to address the US Congress.

When Kishida visited the US in November, President Joe Biden proposed a state visit for early in 2024. Sources say the two governments had since been aiming for early March.

But they say the date may be moved to the first half of April because in March, Biden is slated to deliver his State of the Union speech, while Japan's Diet deliberations on the fiscal 2024 draft budget will enter the final stage.

Kishida's state visit to the US would be the first one since Prime Minister Abe Shinzo's in 2015.