lil-waynesongs

Japan and the US are crucial defence allies and each other's top foreign investors

Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba on Thursday left for the United States ahead of what will be President Donald Trump's second summit with a foreign leader because his go back to the White House.

Japan is among the closest allies of the United States in Asia with around 54,000 US military personnel stationed in the country.

Ishiba will be pushing for peace of mind on the significance of the US-Japan alliance, as Trump's "America First" agenda dangers intruding on the countries' trade and defence ties.

"It would be fantastic if we might verify that we will work together for the advancement this region and the world and for peace," Ishiba informed reporters in Tokyo before leaving for the trip.

Japan's Nikkei newspaper said Thursday the pair will release a joint declaration, which could vow to develop a "golden age" of bilateral relations and bring the alliance to "brand-new heights".

Ishiba is expected to inform Trump that Japan will increase defence purchases from the United States, the Nikkei said.

Ishiba may also propose importing more US gas-- chiming with Trump's strategy to "drill, child, drill" while improving energy security for resource-poor Japan.

Since Japan has actually cut its liquefied gas (LNG) imports from Russia, it "desperately needs to open brand-new sources of LNG, and other energy more broadly", Sheila Smith, senior fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations, forum.altaycoins.com told AFP.

"The intent is to present a win-win worth proposition from Ishiba to the president," she said.

Trump will fulfill Ishiba in Washington on Friday-- just days after a joint press conference with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, where the US president sparked uproar with a proposal to take over the Gaza Strip.

The Japan summit could be less shocking, classihub.in Smith said, as Trump "has a fairly strong commitment to the alliances in Asia".

hazard -

Ishiba has actually worried the significance of US defence ties, indicating threats on Japan's doorstep such as China pushing its claims of sovereignty on the self-ruled island of Taiwan.

Tokyo needs to "continue to secure the US dedication to the region, to prevent a power vacuum leading to regional instability", Ishiba just recently informed parliament.

Trump and Ishiba are expected to verify the significance of peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait, Japanese media said.

That would echo joint statements made by the last US president Joe Biden with previous Japanese prime ministers.

Concentrating on this point is "exceptionally essential" since Japan and the United States must interact to avoid a potential crisis, said Takashi Shiraishi, a worldwide relations expert at the Prefectural University of Kumamoto.

As Japan and the United States renegotiate how to share the concern of defence expenses, however, there are issues Trump could offer less cash and push Japan to do more, Smith said.

"That's where ... the Ishiba-Trump relationship might get a bit sticky," she said.

- After Abe -

Also causing jitters is Trump's willingness to slap trade tariffs on significant trading partners China, Canada, and Mexico-- though he has actually postponed measures against the latter two nations pending talks.

"I hope Ishiba will show him there are other methods to attain financial security," such as cooperating on technology, Shiraishi informed AFP.

One example is the Stargate drive, announced after Trump's January inauguration, to invest as much as $500 billion in AI infrastructure in the United States, led by Japanese tech financial investment leviathan SoftBank Group and US firm OpenAI.

Reports said the leaders might likewise talk about Nippon Steel's $14.9 billion bid to buy US Steel, which Biden obstructed on nationwide security grounds.

Japan and the United States are each other's top foreign investors, and the Nikkei reported that the leaders will agree on creating an investment-friendly environment.

During his first term, Trump and Japan's then-prime minister Shinzo Abe enjoyed warm relations.

As president-elect in December, Trump likewise hosted Akie Abe, the widow of Japan's assassinated ex-premier, for a supper with Melania Trump at their Florida home.

Trump built a strong relationship with Abe, for whom Smith believes he had a "real fondness".

He will likely "see Ishiba through a different lens", said Smith, and "it will be more the state-to-state relationship, not the personal".

Ishiba, 68, will not be the first Japanese VIP to fulfill the 78-year-old Trump face to face since he took workplace-- a distinction held by SoftBank founder Masayoshi Son.