Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba and US President Donald Trump on Friday struck a warm tone at their first meeting, with Tokyo avoiding tariffs that Trump has slapped on other allies — for now.
However, Trump said he plans to announce reciprocal tariffs on many countries by tomorrow or Tuesday, a major escalation of his offensive to tear up and reshape global trade relationships in the US’ favor.
Heaping praise on each other at the White House, Trump and Ishiba pledged to stand together against Chinese “aggression” and said they found a solution for a blocked deal for troubled US Steel Corp.
Photo: AFP
Trump pressed Ishiba to cut the US trade deficit with Japan to zero, and warned that Tokyo could still face tariffs on exported goods if it fails to do so.
Ishiba, an avowed “geek” and model warship fan, has been under pressure to replicate Trump’s close relationship with former Japanese prime minister and golf buddy Shinzo Abe.
Both leaders insisted they had struck up a rapport during what was only the second visit by a foreign leader of Trump’s new term.
“I was so excited to see such a celebrity on television in person,” Ishiba told their joint news conference, while saying he was not trying to “suck up.”
“On television he is frightening and has a very strong personality, but when I met with him actually he was very sincere and very powerful,” he said.
As they exchanged photographs, Trump praised the 68-year-old Japanese prime minister as “good looking” — typically one of the former reality TV star’s highest orders of praise.
The US president laughed and said “that’s a very good answer” when Ishiba said he could not respond to a “theoretical question” about whether he would retaliate to any US tariffs.
Meanwhile, Trump said that Japan’s Nippon Steel Corp would make a major investment in US Steel, but not take over the troubled company as previously negotiated.
His predecessor, former US president Joe Biden, had blocked the deal.
The two leaders also doubled down on decades-old US ties in security and trade — despite fears that Trump could turn on Tokyo as he has with other US allies.
Trump said they had agreed to fight “Chinese economic aggression” and in a joint statement they condemned Beijing for “provocative activities” in the contested South China Sea.
They also called for a denuclearized North Korea, although Trump — who met North Korean leader Kim Jong-un during his first term — said he wanted to have “relations” with Pyongyang.
Behind Trump’s expressions of support were Japan’s promises of a US$1 trillion investment in the US and to boost Japanese purchases of US defense equipment.
Ishiba said his country was the biggest investor in the US and would step up its spending.
Additional reporting by Reuters
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