Japanese leader arrives in Washington to sell Trump on the importance of Asian alliances
Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba is set to meet with President Donald Trump at the White House on Friday.
HONG KONG — What a difference a few months makes.
The United States and its longtime allies Japan and South Korea have been strengthening ties in recent years, both individually and as a three-way partnership, in an effort to counter an increasingly assertive China and North Korea. But recent political changes in Washington, Tokyo and Seoul have injected new uncertainty into their relations.
South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol is facing an impeachment trial over his botched attempt in December to declare martial law, and it will be months before the country has a clear leader. In Japan, Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba is hamstrung by a minority government after his scandal-ridden Liberal Democratic Party performed poorly in an October parliamentary election.
And in the United States, voters elected a president in November who has disdain for alliances and prefers to deal with countries individually, and who in his first term accused Japan and South Korea of “freeloading” under the U.S. security umbrella.
Shigeru Ishiba departing Tokyo for Washington on Thursday.JIJI Press / AFP - Getty ImagesOn Friday, Ishiba is set to meet with President Donald Trump at the White House, in the first major indication of how the new U.S. administration will interact with the two Asian democracies.
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