Japan Prime Minister Eager to Build Relationship with Trump, Says February Summit Date Will Be Chosen Soon

The Yomiuri Shimbun

15:24 JST, January 21, 2025

Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba said Tuesday he wanted to establish a “relationship of trust” with U.S. President Donald Trump.

“I want to establish a relationship of trust [with Trump] through sincere discussions centered on how to utilize our bilateral relations for world peace and the global economy, while also benefiting the national interests [of both Japan and the United States] as much as possible,” Ishiba told reporters at the Prime Minister’s Office.

Regarding the Japan-U.S. summit arranged for the first half of February, Ishiba said it “would not take long” to decide on the date.

Ishiba also said that he sent a congratulatory letter to Trump stating that he wanted to “work closely to further strengthen Japan-U.S. relations and to realize a free and open Indo-Pacific.”

Regarding Trump’s inauguration speech, Ishiba said he felt the address “repeated what he had said in the presidential campaign” regarding changes in U.S. energy policy and other matters.

Foreign Minister Takeshi Iwaya, who is the first Japanese foreign minister to attend a U.S. presidential inauguration ceremony, said after the event: “[The fact that they invited me] shows that the Trump administration values Japan-U.S. relations. It has strengthened my determination to raise the relationship to a higher level.”

Iwaya also said he spoke with businessman Elon Musk, who holds a key post in the Trump administration, at a church service prior to the ceremony.

The foreign minister is scheduled to meet Tuesday with Marco Rubio, who was confirmed by the Congress as Trump’s secretary of state, and attend a meeting of foreign ministers from the Quad, a framework including Japan, the United States, Australia and India.