Japan PM hopes for ‘enduring’ US ties as Trump returns to power

Shigeru Ishiba says he’s eager to hold his first in-person summit with Trump soon to set a baseline for the bilateral relationship

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Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba in Tokyo on January 13. Photo: Kyodo

Published: 7:19am, 21 Jan 2025Updated: 9:47am, 21 Jan 2025

Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba on Tuesday congratulated US President Donald Trump on returning to the White House and expressed his intention to strengthen the bilateral relationship amid China’s growing assertiveness in the region.

“I look forward to collaborating with you to reinforce the enduring Japan-US partnership and jointly pursue our shared goal of a free and open Indo-Pacific,” Ishiba said on social media.

Trump was sworn in on Monday for his second term as US president. He has promised to bring back his “America First” platform that posed challenges for allies who were forced to deal with his erratic decision-making, provocative rhetoric and transactional approach.

Trump pressed US allies to increase defence spending during his first term, and this time has threatened them with trade tariffs.

Joe Biden, who took from Trump in January 2021, has been credited with recommitting the US to multilateralism and pursuing what his administration called a “latticework” of partnerships and alliances to address various challenges in the Indo-Pacific.

Ishiba said he was eager to hold his first in-person summit with Trump to establish a relationship and set a baseline for the bilateral relationship, with government sources looking to the first half of February as a possible time for the Japanese leader’s trip to the United States.

Japanese Foreign Minister Takeshi Iwaya (right) and his Australian counterpart Penny Wong hold talks in Washington on Sunday. Photo: Kyodo