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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 return 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 pushing for reassurance on the importance of the US-Japan alliance, as Trump's "America First" agenda risks intruding on the countries' trade and defence ties.

"It would be wonderful if we might affirm that we will collaborate for the development this region and the world and for peace," Ishiba informed reporters in Tokyo before leaving for the journey.

Japan's Nikkei paper said Thursday the pair will provide a joint declaration, which could vow to develop a "golden era" of bilateral relations and bring the alliance to "brand-new heights".

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

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

Since Japan has actually cut its liquefied gas (LNG) imports from Russia, it "desperately needs to open up new sources of LNG, and other energy more broadly", Sheila Smith, senior fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations, informed AFP.

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

Trump will satisfy 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 proposal to take over the Gaza Strip.

The Japan top could be less stunning, demo.qkseo.in Smith said, as Trump "has a fairly strong dedication to the alliances in Asia".

- Taiwan threat -

Ishiba has actually stressed the importance of US defence ties, pointing to threats on Japan's doorstep such as China pushing its claims of sovereignty on the self-ruled island of Taiwan.

Tokyo needs to "continue to protect the US dedication to the area, to prevent a power vacuum leading to local instability", Ishiba just recently informed parliament.

Trump and Ishiba are anticipated to affirm the value 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 "exceptionally essential" since Japan and the United States must collaborate to avoid a possible crisis, said Takashi Shiraishi, a worldwide relations specialist at the Prefectural University of Kumamoto.

As Japan and the United States renegotiate how to share the burden of defence expenses, wiki.vst.hs-furtwangen.de nevertheless, there are 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 triggering jitters is Trump's determination to slap trade tariffs on major trading partners China, Canada, and Mexico-- though he has postponed steps against the latter 2 nations pending talks.

"I hope Ishiba will show him there are other methods to attain economic security," such as working together on innovation, Shiraishi told AFP.

One example is the Stargate drive, announced after Trump's January inauguration, to invest up to $500 billion in AI infrastructure in the United States, led by Japanese tech investment behemoth SoftBank Group and US firm OpenAI.

Reports said the leaders could also talk about Nippon Steel's $14.9 billion quote to buy US Steel, kenpoguy.com which Biden obstructed on nationwide security premises.

Japan and the United States are each other's top 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 enjoyed warm relations.

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

Trump built a strong relationship with Abe, for mariskamast.net whom Smith thinks he had a "genuine fondness".

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

Ishiba, 68, forum.batman.gainedge.org will not be the very first Japanese VIP to satisfy the 78-year-old Trump personally since he took workplace-- a distinction held by SoftBank creator Masayoshi Son.