Tokyo, March 18 (IANS) Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi will depart for Washington on Wednesday night on a three-day visit during which she is set to hold talks with US President Donald Trump with a goal to cement her standing as US’ indispensable partner in Asia, local media reported.
It will be Takaichi’s first visit to the US since she took office in October and her first overseas trip since her Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) secured win in the House of Representatives election held on February 8.
Takaichi and Trump will hold a meeting at the White House on Thursday, where they will discuss ways to further strengthen the Japan-US alliance and advance economic security cooperation, according to Japanese government officials. According to the officials, Trump will host Takaichi for both a working lunch and a dinner later Thursday following the meeting, Japan-based Kyodo News reported.
The officials said that the strong commitment by Japan and the US to a “free and open Indo-Pacific” and their collaboration in Artificial Intelligence (AI) and critical minerals such as rare earths, will also be likely discussed by the leaders of two nations during the meeting. .
Despite US’ tensions with several nations over tariff, the two leaders will likely reaffirm the steady implementation of a bilateral deal reached in July. According to the agreement, Japan has committed to directing USD 550 billion toward US-based projects in strategic industries, including energy, critical minerals, semiconductors and shipbuilding. In exchange, the US reduced tariffs on products imported from Japan.
This will be second meeting between Trump and Takaichi as the two leaders met in Tokyo in October last year.
Prior to her visit to the US, Takaichi faced a difficult situation as Trump over the weekend said he wanted Japan and other nations to deploy warships to ensure the safety of shipping in the Strait of Hormuz. However, Trump on Tuesday announced that the US no longer required the naval support and expressed displeasure as Japan and other nations remained hesitant to agree to his repeated requests of deploying warships in the Strait of Hormuz, Kyodo News reported.
The Strait of Hormuz connects the Persian Gulf with global markets and carries a significant share of the world’s oil shipments, making any disruption closely watched by energy-importing countries, including India. Japan relies on the Middle East for over 90 percent of its crude oil imports, majority of which travel through Strait of Hormuz.
–IANS
akl/as
