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Japan and the US are key 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 summit with a foreign leader because his go back to the White House.

Japan is one of the closest allies of the United States in Asia with around 54,000 US military workers stationed in the nation.

Ishiba will be promoting reassurance on the importance of the US-Japan alliance, as Trump's "America First" program threats intruding on the countries' trade and defence ties.

"It would be fantastic if we could verify that we will interact for the advancement this region and the world and for peace," Ishiba told press reporters in Tokyo before leaving for the trip.

Japan's Nikkei newspaper said Thursday the pair will provide a joint statement, which could vow to develop a "golden age" 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 may also propose importing more US gas-- chiming with Trump's plan to "drill, baby, drill" while enhancing energy security for resource-poor Japan.

Since Japan has actually cut its melted gas (LNG) imports from Russia, it "desperately requires 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 present a win-win value proposition from Ishiba to the president," she said.

Trump will satisfy Ishiba in Washington on Friday-- simply days after a joint interview with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, where the US president sparked outcry with a proposition to take over the Gaza Strip.

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

- Taiwan risk -

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

Tokyo must "continue to secure the US dedication to the area, to prevent a power vacuum leading to regional instability", Ishiba just recently informed parliament.

Trump and Ishiba are expected to verify the value of peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait, Japanese media said.

That would echo joint declarations made by the last US president Joe Biden with previous Japanese prime ministers.

Concentrating on this point is "extremely essential" because Japan and the United States should work together to prevent a possible crisis, said Takashi Shiraishi, a global relations expert at the Prefectural University of Kumamoto.

As Japan and the United States renegotiate how to share the burden of defence costs, however, photorum.eclat-mauve.fr there are concerns Trump might supply less money and push Japan to do more, Smith said.

"That's where ... the Ishiba-Trump relationship might get a bit sticky," she said.

- After Abe -

Also causing jitters is Trump's determination to slap trade tariffs on significant trading partners China, Canada, and Mexico-- though he has postponed procedures against the latter two nations pending talks.

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

One example is the Stargate drive, wiki.eqoarevival.com revealed after Trump's January inauguration, to invest approximately $500 billion in AI facilities in the United States, dokuwiki.stream led by Japanese tech financial investment leviathan SoftBank Group and US firm OpenAI.

Reports said the leaders might also talk about $14.9 billion quote to buy US Steel, which Biden obstructed on nationwide security grounds.

Japan and pipewiki.org the United States are each other's leading foreign investors, and setiathome.berkeley.edu the Nikkei reported that the leaders will settle on producing 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 likewise hosted Akie Abe, tandme.co.uk the widow of Japan's assassinated ex-premier, wiki.whenparked.com for a supper with Melania Trump at their Florida residence.

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

He will likely "see Ishiba through a various 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 satisfy the 78-year-old Trump in person considering that he took workplace-- a difference held by SoftBank founder Masayoshi Son.