Japan Govt to Carefully Assess Timing of Trump-Ishiba Meeting; Officials Fear Receiving ‘Homework’ from President-elect

The Yomiuri Shimbun

15:43 JST, December 18, 2024

The government will carefully assess the timing for Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba to visit the United States to hold a meeting with U.S. President-elect Donald Trump, as Trump has expressed a willingness to meet with him.

Organizing a formal summit meeting soon after Trump’s Jan. 20 inauguration will be prioritized while the Japanese government coordinates with his team.

“I welcome Mr. Trump’s positive comments. I hope they can take the time to exchange views and build a personal relationship,” said Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi at a press conference on Tuesday. Regarding the schedule for the meeting, he only said it would be “at a time convenient for both sides.”

While Trump’s position is that a meeting before his inauguration is also possible, most in the Japanese government believe that there is no need to rush. This is because, if there is a pre-inauguration meeting, a post-inauguration meeting with Ishiba may not be prioritized since many other countries are also expected to be requesting meetings with the new president.

Since there are no pressing issues to be discussed between Japan and the United States, a government official has expressed concerns that, “If we rush into talks before the inauguration, we may be given homework such as increasing our share of the defense burden.”

Regarding George Glass, a businessman who will be appointed as the ambassador to Japan under the new Trump administration, a senior official at the Foreign Ministry expressed hope, saying: “He is close to Trump and has diplomatic experience as the former ambassador to Portugal. We expect to build a good relationship with him.”