Japan’s Ishiba heads to Washington to meet Trump, aims to build personal ties

Before his trip, Ishiba met with SoftBank CEO Masayoshi Son and OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, some of whom precocious spoke with Trump. He besides consulted erstwhile Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and Akie Abe, widow of Shinzo Abe, the precocious premier curate who had a adjacent relationship with Trump.

Ishiba’s challenge

Trump had yet to settee into the Oval Office erstwhile helium held his archetypal gathering with a overseas person successful 2016.

Abe, past Japan’s premier minister, met Trump astatine Trump Tower successful New York, bringing a gold-plated play nine arsenic a gift. Abe’s efforts to impressment and physique a bully narration with Trump were precise important, arsenic Trump had suggested during his run that helium mightiness retreat US troops from Japan unless Tokyo contributed much financially to the alliance.

Abe’s strategy worked.

During Trump’s archetypal term, helium and Abe bonded implicit play and gourmet burgers, strengthening US-Japan relations. Abe’s idiosyncratic rapport with Trump helped guarantee the continuation of the US-Japan information treaty, a cardinal portion of Japan’s overseas policy.

Ishiba, however, is not known for play oregon high-energy diplomacy. Instead, helium is expected to absorption connected strategical discussions, including securing US information commitments and economical cooperation.

Key issues connected the agenda

During their meeting, Ishiba is expected to question Trump’s assurances that the US volition proceed to support Japan, including successful immoderate struggle with China implicit the disputed Senkaku Islands. He volition besides propulsion for stability successful the Taiwan Strait and enactment against North Korea’s atomic threats.

Trade volition beryllium different delicate topic. While Trump has truthful acold focused connected imposing tariffs connected Mexico, Canada, and China; Ishiba knows that Japan, which has a $56 cardinal commercialized surplus with the US, could besides look caller commercialized pressures. “We person a batch of topics to discuss,” Ishiba told lawmakers earlier his trip. “I anticipation to acceptable priorities and get results successful the constricted clip we have.”

One large contented is Japan’s Nippon Steel’s planned $14.1 cardinal acquisition of US Steel, which President Joe Biden blocked successful January implicit nationalist information concerns. Trump has besides opposed the deal, saying helium is “totally against” a overseas institution buying US Steel. While Ishiba does not program to bring up the deal, helium is prepared to marque Japan’s lawsuit if Trump raises it.

Yet different cardinal contented is defence spending. Japan has committed to raising its defence budget to 2% of GDP by 2027, matching NATO’s target. However, Trump has been pressing allies to summation spending adjacent further, up to 5% of GDP—a situation for galore nations.

Will Ishiba physique a idiosyncratic bond?

Diplomatic observers are watching intimately to spot if Ishiba tin make a idiosyncratic transportation with Trump, akin to Abe’s. Senator Bill Hagerty, a erstwhile US ambassador to Japan, said Ishiba’s sojourn is simply a cardinal opportunity. “Japan’s overseas argumentation has ever been ‘America First,’ and if Ishiba tin present that connection effectively, helium volition found a instauration for beardown confederation ties.”

Tobias Harris, laminitis of Japan Foresight, a governmental hazard advisory firm, warned that Ishiba’s handling of Trump could interaction his lasting successful Japan’s ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP). “If helium is overly ingratiating, helium volition beryllium grilled successful parliament. But if helium fails to unafraid cardinal assurances from Trump, his rivals successful the LDP could measurement up the pressure.”

(With inputs from AP, The Guardian)