Tag - us-japan-relations

 
 

US JAPAN RELATIONS

Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba speaks to reporters at his official residence in Tokyo on Thursday.
BUSINESS / Economy
Apr 20, 2025
No concessions over food safety in Japan-U.S. talks, Ishiba says
The prime minister also said that expanding LNG imports could be used as a bargaining chip.
Ryosei Akazawa, Japan's Economic Revitalization Minister and top tariff negotiator with the U.S., speaks to the press upon his arrival at Haneda Airport in Tokyo on Friday.
BUSINESS / Markets
Apr 20, 2025
Japan mulls reviewing car safety rules to strike deal with Trump
The report comes after Japan’s chief negotiator Ryosei Akazawa kicked off tariff discussions with U.S. counterparts in Washington last week.
A doughnut shop originating in Fukuoka Prefecture will open in New York on Tuesday, featuring its signature soft and moist doughnuts.
JAPAN
Apr 19, 2025
Fukuoka doughnut shop set for debut in New York
The shop, I'm donut, will sell doughnuts with a teriyaki chicken filling and cream fillings using green tea powder.
Japanese products imported to the U.S. had been hit with 24% levies, although these rates, like most of U.S. President Donald Trump's tariffs, have been paused for 90 days.
BUSINESS
Apr 19, 2025
Japan considering soybean and rice concessions in U.S. tariff talks: report
In their first round of bilateral talks, U.S. negotiators brought up automobiles and rice as areas where they said Tokyo puts up market barriers.
Ryosei Akazawa, Japan's top tariff negotiator with the U.S., speaks to reporters upon his arrival at Tokyo's Haneda Airport on Friday, a day after talks in Washington.
BUSINESS / Economy
Apr 19, 2025
Japan tariff negotiator rules out quick U.S. deal despite push by Trump
Ryosei Akazawa said that while the U.S. president wants to speed up negotiations, any agreement would likely take some time.
U.S. military personnel join Japanese officials and residents for a one-off joint nighttime patrol on the streets of the city of Okinawa, in Okinawa Prefecture, late Friday in the first such joint operation since 1973, following sexual assault cases involving U.S. servicemen.
JAPAN / Society
Apr 19, 2025
Japan and U.S. patrol Okinawa streets after sexual assaults
In the first such joint operation since 1973, participants walked along a downtown street dotted with restaurants, bars and clubs near a U.S. airbase.
Defense Minister Gen Nakatani speaks to reporters in Tokyo on April 11.
JAPAN / Politics
Apr 18, 2025
Japan defense chief says 'no reason' to change current U.S. troop deal
Gen Nakatani said that spending “is appropriately shared between the Japanese and U.S. governments based on mutual agreement, with a set time frame.”
U.S. Ambassador to Japan George Glass speaks to reporters on Friday in Tokyo just after he arrived at Haneda Airport.
JAPAN / Politics
Apr 18, 2025
New U.S. envoy arrives in Japan with focus on trade, defense and reining in China
Ambassador George Glass said Washington will aim to deepen cooperation with Tokyo on pushing back against China's economic and military moves.
Ryosei Akazawa (third from right), Japan's tariffs negotiator, in a meeting with U.S. Secretary of the Treasury Scott Bessent (second from right) and other senior government officials on Wednesday in Washington
BUSINESS
Apr 18, 2025
Trump reiterates opposition to Nippon Steel’s purchase of U.S. Steel
Whether there is interplay between the tariff negotiations and the Nippon Steel-U.S. Steel deal has never been made clear.
Finance Minister Katsunobu Kato listens to a question during an interview at the Finance Ministry in Tokyo on Thursday.
BUSINESS / Economy
Apr 18, 2025
Japan's finance minister is 'deeply concerned' over impact of Trump's tariffs
The minister also voiced concern over volatile market moves that Trump's tariffs triggered, saying they could hurt Japan's economic recovery.
Ryosei Akazawa, Japan's chief tariff negotiator, speaks to reporters in Washington on Wednesday.
BUSINESS / Economy
Apr 17, 2025
Japan and the U.S. begin tariff talks on good terms, but without breakthroughs
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba said there are still gaps between the respective stances of Japan and the U.S.
Economists fail to understand that Donald Trump's tariff policy is part of a broader strategy to prepare the U.S. for long-term competition with China, driven by national security concerns rather than traditional economic or trade policy.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Apr 17, 2025
What economists 'don’t get' about Trump tariffs
My view is that the U.S. has started to prepare seriously for a long-term competition with China for global dominance.
Bottles of Hakkaisan-brand sake for export
BUSINESS
Apr 17, 2025
U.S. tariffs overshadow Japan's agriculture and food exports
Japanese goods need to be sold by "emphasizing that there are no alternatives" to them, said Kazuhito Yamashita, senior researcher at the Canon Institute for Global Strategies.
U.S. President Donald Trump speaks during a Cabinet meeting at the White House on Thursday in Washington.
JAPAN / Politics / ANALYSIS
Apr 16, 2025
Trump calls the U.S.-Japan alliance ‘one-sided.’ Tokyo says otherwise.
Some observers believe the U.S. president’s worldview is stuck in the 1980s, a time when trade deficits with Japan captured the attention of U.S. policymakers.
Production of Honda’s five-door hybrid Civic is set to be relocated to the firm’s plant in Indiana in June or July.
BUSINESS
Apr 16, 2025
Honda to shift production of Civic from Japan to U.S. due to tariffs
Production of the five-door hybrid model will be relocated around June or July to Honda’s plant in Indiana.
Economic revitalization minister Ryosei Akazawa, Japan's chief tariff negotiator, responds to a question at Haneda Airport in Tokyo ahead of his visit to the United States on Wednesday.
BUSINESS / Economy
Apr 16, 2025
Akazawa, Japan’s tariff czar, jets to Washington for mission impossible 
Tokyo realizes that achieving a satisfactory meeting of the minds with Washington will be a real challenge.
Bank of Japan Gov. Kazuo Ueda
BUSINESS / Economy
Apr 16, 2025
Trump’s tariffs may spur policy response from BOJ, Sankei reports
Bank of Japan Gov. Kazuo Ueda's policy comments reinforce speculation that authorities aren’t likely to consider a near-term rate hike.
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba has sent a delegation to Washington for high-stakes tariff talks, as other nations watch to see if Tokyo can secure favorable terms from the Trump administration.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Apr 16, 2025
If Japan can’t get a good trade deal, can anyone?
The Asian nation is the canary in the tariff coal mine. If it can’t secure a good deal, there’s little hope for others.
Former U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Richard Armitage, well regarded in Tokyo as a leading voice in the promotion of U.S.-Japan ties, has died at the age of 79.
JAPAN / Politics
Apr 15, 2025
Richard Armitage, ex-U.S. diplomat known for boosting Japan ties, dies at 79
He was a leading voice in the promotion of U.S.-Japan relations even after leaving government service.
U.S. President Donald Trump and Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba hold a news conference at the White House in Washington on Feb. 7. Tokyo's focus on economic strength to promote security contrasts with Washington's current era of unpredictability.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Apr 15, 2025
For real national security, try a Japanese perspective
Genuine national security starts from a strong economy, one that provides for its citizens, incentivizes growth, production and wealth, and invites foreign participation.

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Visitors walk past Sou Fujimoto's Grand Ring, which has been recognized as the largest wooden structure in the world.
Can a World Expo still matter? Japan is about to find out.