Ishiba Pledges to Boost Japan’s Investment in U.S. to $1 Trillion; Trump Says Meeting with Nippon Steel Execs Scheduled

By Akihisa Ota and Shinji Abe / Yomiuri Shimbun Staff Writers

17:19 JST, February 8, 2025

WASHINGTON — Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba pledged to boost Japan’s investment in the United States to about $1 trillion (about ¥151 trillion) during his first in-person summit with U.S. President Donald Trump on Friday.

During the meeting at the White House in Washington, Ishiba also expressed Japan’s intention to increase its imports of liquefied natural gas (LNG) produced in the United States.

Regarding the pending acquisition of U.S. Steel Corp. by Nippon Steel Corp., the two leaders shared the view that this deal involves investment in the United States, rather than being a takeover, and agreed to work together to resolve the situation.

The meeting of the two leaders lasted for about one hour and 50 minutes, which included a working lunch. They issued a joint statement that made reference to the “unwavering commitment” of both the United States to the defense of Japan as well as the Japan-U.S. alliance toward a “free and open Indo-Pacific.”

Japan’s investment in the United States was $783.3 billion (about ¥120 trillion) in 2023. Japan aims to underscore its contribution to Trump’s “America First” policy by expanding that figure to $1 trillion in the future.

Ishiba stressed that Japan has been the world’s largest investor in the United States for five consecutive years and mentioned new factory construction plans in the United States by Toyota Motor Corp. and Isuzu Motors Ltd. The two leaders confirmed that Japan and the United States will cooperate on expanding investment and employment in the two countries and agreed to strengthen energy security through steps such as increasing Japan’s imports of LNG from the United States.

“[Nippon Steel] are going to do a big investment. I didn’t want [U.S. Steel] purchased, but investment I love,” Trump said at a joint press conference after the summit. “I’m okay with it, sure.”

Trump appears to have shown a view that the current acquisition plan should be revised in some way. The U.S. president also revealed that he would meet with Nippon Steel executives this week to discuss the matter.

The planned acquisition has been on the verge of collapse since former U.S. President Joe Biden issued an executive order to block the purchase, citing national security concerns. This Japan-U.S. summit could change the situation, but the future of the deal remains uncertain.

At the beginning of the summit, Trump said the U.S. trade deficit with Japan was about $100 billion (about ¥15 trillion) and pressed Tokyo to resolve this issue. When asked by a reporter whether he would consider raising tariffs against Japan if the issue was not resolved, he said he would.

During the summit, the two leaders opposed China’s unilateral change of the status quo in the East and South China Seas and reiterated the importance of peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait. They also agreed to cooperate on the complete denuclearization of North Korea and the issue of Japanese nationals abducted by Pyongyang.

Ishiba told Trump that Japan is steadily making progress in its plan to increase its security-related spending to 2% of its gross domestic product over five years ending fiscal 2027 and asked for his understanding. The joint statement specified Japan’s commitment to “fundamentally reinforcing its defense capabilities beyond FY2027” with a view to boosting defense spending further when the nation compiles its next Defense Buildup Program.