Trump reaffirms nation’s commitment to Japan.
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump pledged close security and economic cooperation with Japan on Friday, opening an elaborate multiday work-and-play visit with Prime Minister Shinzo Abe that is intended to showcase a warm rapport with a central player in Asia.
Hoping to put behind any friction remaining from his sometimes provocative statements during last year’s presidential campaign, Trump hugged Abe as he arrived at the White House, lavished praise on him and his nation, and offered strong reassurances about the United States’ commitment to Japan’s defense.
“The bond between our two nations and the friendship between our two peoples runs very, very deep,” Trump said at a news conference with Abe, reading from a prepared text. “This administration is committed to bringing those ties even closer. We are committed to the security of Japan and all areas under its administrative control and to further strengthening our very crucial alliance.”
Among the topics of discussion during Abe’s weekend visit will be whether, and how, to pursue a bilateral trade agreement between the United States and Japan after Trump’s decision to withdraw from the Trans-Pacific Partnership, a sweeping trade deal between the United States and 11 nations that included Japan.
Trump also tried to dispel doubts about his commitment to a mutual defense treaty with Japan that surfaced during his campaign, when he said he was prepared to pull back from the pact unless Tokyo did more to reimburse the United States for defending Japanese territory.
Trump reaffirmed his support for the treaty Friday, as his defense secretary, Jim Mattis, did during a visit to Tokyo last week.
And with his reference to “areas under its administrative control,” Trump made clear the treaty extended to disputed islands in the East China Sea, known in Japan as the Senkaku and in China as the Diaoyu.
Abe responded with equal warmth, welcoming his commitment to the defense treaty while sidestepping questions about Trump’s withdrawal from the Trans-Pacific Partnership.