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Japan and annunciogratis.net the US are crucial defence allies and each other's top foreign investors

Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba on Thursday left for the United States ahead of what will be President Donald Trump's 2nd top with a foreign leader because his return to the White House.

Japan is among the closest allies of the United States in Asia with around 54,000 US military workers stationed in the country.

Ishiba will be promoting reassurance on the value of the US-Japan alliance, as Trump's "America First" program dangers intruding on the nations' trade and defence ties.

"It would be wonderful if we could affirm that we will interact for the development this region and the world and for peace," Ishiba told press reporters in Tokyo before leaving for wiki.monnaie-libre.fr the journey.

Japan's Nikkei paper said Thursday the pair will provide a joint statement, which could vow to construct a "golden age" of bilateral relations and bring the alliance to "new heights".

Ishiba is expected to tell Trump that Japan will increase defence purchases from the United States, classifieds.ocala-news.com the Nikkei said.

Ishiba might likewise propose importing more US gas-- chiming with Trump's strategy to "drill, baby, drill" while increasing energy security for resource-poor Japan.

Since Japan has actually cut its melted natural gas (LNG) imports from Russia, it "desperately requires to open brand-new sources of LNG, and other energy more broadly", Sheila Smith, senior fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations, informed AFP.

"The objective is to present a win-win worth proposition from Ishiba to the president," she said.

Trump will satisfy Ishiba in Washington on days after a joint press conference with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, where the US president stimulated outcry with a proposition to take over the Gaza Strip.

The Japan top could be less stunning, Smith said, utahsyardsale.com as Trump "has a fairly strong dedication to the alliances in Asia".

- Taiwan danger -

Ishiba has worried the value of US defence ties, indicating risks on Japan's doorstep such as China pressing its claims of sovereignty on the self-ruled island of Taiwan.

Tokyo needs to "continue to protect the US dedication to the region, to avoid a power vacuum leading to regional instability", Ishiba recently told parliament.

Trump and Ishiba are expected to affirm the importance of peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait, Japanese media said.

That would echo joint declarations made by the last US president Joe Biden with previous Japanese prime ministers.

Focusing on this point is "exceptionally important" because Japan and the United States must collaborate to prevent a prospective crisis, said Takashi Shiraishi, a global relations specialist at the Prefectural University of Kumamoto.

As Japan and the United States renegotiate how to share the concern of defence costs, nevertheless, there are concerns Trump might supply less money and push Japan to do more, Smith said.

"That's where ... the Ishiba-Trump relationship could get a bit sticky," she said.

- After Abe -

Also triggering jitters is Trump's desire to slap trade tariffs on significant trading partners China, Canada, and Mexico-- though he has delayed steps against the latter 2 countries pending talks.

"I hope Ishiba will reveal him there are other methods to attain financial security," such as complying on technology, Shiraishi told AFP.

One example is the Stargate drive, revealed after Trump's January inauguration, to invest as much as $500 billion in AI facilities in the United States, led by Japanese tech financial investment leviathan SoftBank Group and US firm OpenAI.

Reports said the leaders could also discuss Nippon Steel's $14.9 billion bid to purchase US Steel, which Biden blocked on national security grounds.

Japan and the United States are each other's top foreign financiers, and the Nikkei reported that the leaders will agree on developing an investment-friendly environment.

During his very first term, Trump and Japan's then-prime minister Shinzo Abe took pleasure in warm relations.

As president-elect in December, Trump likewise hosted Akie Abe, the widow of Japan's assassinated ex-premier, for a supper with Melania Trump at their Florida house.

Trump constructed a strong relationship with Abe, for whom Smith believes he had a "real fondness".

He will likely "see Ishiba through a various lens", fishtanklive.wiki said Smith, and "it will be more the state-to-state relationship, not the personal".

Ishiba, 68, forums.cgb.designknights.com will not be the very first Japanese VIP to fulfill the 78-year-old Trump in individual because he took workplace-- a distinction held by SoftBank founder Masayoshi Son.