Japan and the US are crucial defence allies and each other's top foreign financiers

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 considering that his go back 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 pressing for peace of mind on the importance of the US-Japan alliance, prawattasao.awardspace.info as Trump's "America First" agenda threats encroaching on the nations' trade and defence ties.

"It would be terrific if we might verify that we will collaborate for the advancement this region and the world and for peace," Ishiba informed press reporters in Tokyo before leaving for the trip.

Japan's Nikkei newspaper said Thursday the pair will issue a joint statement, funsilo.date which might vow to construct a "golden era" of bilateral relations and bring the alliance to "brand-new heights".

Ishiba is expected to tell Trump that Japan will increase defence buy from the United States, the Nikkei said.

Ishiba may also propose importing more US gas-- chiming with Trump's plan to "drill, child, drill" while increasing energy security for resource-poor Japan.

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

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

Trump will fulfill Ishiba in Washington on Friday-- simply days after a joint press conference with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, where the US president sparked uproar with a proposition to take control of the Gaza Strip.

The might be less surprising, Smith said, as Trump "has a fairly strong dedication to the alliances in Asia".

- Taiwan risk -

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

Tokyo must "continue to protect the US dedication to the region, to avoid a power vacuum causing regional instability", Ishiba recently informed 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 statements made by the last US president Joe Biden with previous Japanese prime ministers.

Concentrating on this point is "incredibly important" because Japan and macphersonwiki.mywikis.wiki the United States should collaborate to prevent a possible crisis, said Takashi Shiraishi, an international relations professional at the Prefectural University of Kumamoto.

As Japan and the United States renegotiate how to share the burden of defence expenses, nevertheless, there are concerns Trump might provide less cash 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 causing jitters is Trump's determination to slap trade tariffs on major trading partners China, Canada, and Mexico-- though he has actually postponed procedures against the latter 2 countries pending talks.

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

One example is the Stargate drive, announced 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 might also discuss Nippon Steel's $14.9 billion quote to purchase US Steel, which Biden blocked on national security premises.

Japan and the United States are each other's leading 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 delighted in warm relations.

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

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

He will likely "see Ishiba through a different lens", said Smith, and "it will be more the state-to-state relationship, not the individual".

Ishiba, 68, will not be the very first Japanese VIP to fulfill the 78-year-old Trump personally given that he took office-- a difference held by SoftBank founder Masayoshi Son.