WASHINGTON (Kyodo) The U.S. government was worried during a spate of high-profile trade disputes with Japan in the late 1990s that escalating friction might lead Tokyo to unload its dollar assets and hurt security ties, according to a former top U.S. trade negotiator.
Charlene Barshefsky, who served as U.S. Trade Representative under then President Bill Clinton, said the jitters underscored the "perceived potential vulnerability" of the U.S. economy relying heavily on overseas money to cover its huge current-account deficit.
While facing such pressure to tone down, Barshefsky said she pursued "tough" negotiations with Japan in semiconductor, insurance and many other trade areas, believing that bilateral ties were strong enough to withstand such tactics.