Japan’s Prime Minister Takaichi considers meeting Trump in the United States
Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi is considering the possibility of meeting with U.S. President Donald Trump during a visit to the United States later this month. Tokyo seeks to exchange views with Washington on China and demonstrate the close ties between the two countries ahead of Trump’s summit with Chinese President Xi Jinping.
As The Japan Times reports, the Japanese government has requested such a meeting. A Japanese government source said that even a brief conversation between the leaders could be meaningful.
U.S.-China summit
The meeting between Trump and Xi is scheduled for September 24. Japan’s Chief Cabinet Secretary Minoru Kihara said Tokyo would closely follow the U.S.-China summit and continue close coordination with Washington at all levels, including between leaders and foreign ministers.
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On September 22, Takaichi will address the general debate of the UN General Assembly for the first time. Trump is also expected to speak earlier that day. The Japanese prime minister believes it is necessary to convey Tokyo’s position on China to the U.S. president before his talks with Xi Jinping.
Differences between Tokyo and Washington
Relations between Japan and China deteriorated after Beijing sharply objected to Takaichi’s parliamentary statement on a possible situation surrounding Taiwan. At the same time, Trump hopes to achieve economic results in talks with the Chinese leader ahead of the U.S. midterm elections in November.
Japan is also trying to determine its response to U.S. sanctions against International Criminal Court President Tomoko Akane, who is a Japanese citizen. Washington urged the Takaichi administration to review its fiscal policy over concerns about the possible negative impact of rising interest rates in Japan on the U.S. economy. One Japanese government source believes that, given such differences with Trump, it would be more important to speak by phone after the U.S.-China summit.
