Japan passes first Trump test with perfect timing
World
Japan passes first Trump test with perfect timing
HONG KONG (Reuters Breakingviews) - After months of speculation on whether Shigeru Ishiba would be able to rekindle the bonhomie his predecessor Shinzo Abe had with Donald Trump, the Japanese prime minister has proven he knows how to deliver exactly what the US President wants - and not a moment too soon.
Indeed, the post-summit memo reads like a laundry list of Trump’s top concerns asked and answered. Chief among these was closing Japan’s $69 billion trade deficit, which the US president described as “pretty easy to do.” Ishiba, for his part, promised to boost Japanese investment in the world's biggest economy to $1 trillion and buy more of its liquified natural gas.
These pledges ride on existing trends: Japan’s imports of American LNG rose 15% last year, per finance ministry figures.
Ishiba's relatively strong hand means he can afford some of the optimism he expressed following his White House summit about averting U.S. levies. But any such reprieve would mark a stark exception to the new tariffs Trump has vowed are coming for many trading partners this week. Other issues for Japan, including being caught in the middle of the U.S.-China tech war, may cause more friction later.
The friendly meeting also gives Ishiba a stronger hand heading into negotiations with Japanese lawmakers over his 115.5 trillion yen ($759 billion) budget. The fact Trump didn't publicly push for more military spending suggests Tokyo's current, already record-high defense spending plan, equivalent to 1.4% of its GDP forecast for 2025, is adequate for now.
His new status as successful Trump wrangler strengthens the prime minister’s weak position within his Liberal Democratic Party which recently lost its parliamentary majority. He may not be Abe, but Ishiba appears capable of keeping his mercurial U.S. counterpart placated, so far as that is possible.
