Ishiba: Cooperation in Shipbuilding to Be Focal Point in Tariff Talks; Progress Seemingly Lacking on Auto Tariffs

The Yomiuri Shimbun

14:37 JST, May 26, 2025

Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba said Sunday he considers cooperation with the United States in the shipbuilding industry, such as on repairing U.S. military vessels and the joint development of icebreakers, to be a focal point in the Japan-U.S. tariff negotiations.

Ryosei Akazawa, economic revitalization minister and Japan’s top tariff negotiator, returned to Japan on Sunday after taking part in the third round of ministerial-level talks in the United States and reported the talks’ progress to Ishiba and Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi at the Prime Minister’s Office in Tokyo.

Ishiba that same day spoke to reporters about the third round of talks.

“There were specific discussions with some visible progress,” Ishiba said in Maizuru, Kyoto Prefecture. “We’ll continue to discuss more details [with the U.S. side] with the Group of Seven Summit [in June] in mind.”

In the Friday talks, Akazawa suggested a project to revitalize the shipbuilding industry in the United States through Japan-U.S. cooperation.

“The United States is interested in it,” Ishiba said. “They wonder if Japan can repair U.S. miliary vessels, and we’d like to offer support.”

The United States considers expanding its presence in the Arctic to be important. “Japan has a technological advantage in building icebreakers, so it will be a part of the bilateral cooperation,” Ishiba said.

Nippon Steel Corp.’s acquisition of U.S. Steel Corp. was also discussed during the talks, according to government sources.

“I’d like to wait for an official announcement by the U.S. government,” Ishiba said. Trump has indicated his intention to approve a partnership between U.S. Steel and Nippon Steel.

As for the additional tariffs on automobiles, the key topic for Japan, “The situation is that [the United States] is saying it will neither reduce the tariffs nor increase them,” a senior government official said, indicating that no progress on the issue was made during the Friday talks.

Akazawa will fly to the United States again this weekend to participate in the fourth round of talks with his U.S. counterparts, with U.S. Secretary of the Treasury Scott Bessent expected to be in attendance.