(Adnkronos) – A “very fruitful” conversation with Donald Trump. And the agreement to meet soon. This is what the Japanese Prime Minister, Shigeru Ishiba, said about the phone call he had with the tycoon, after the announcement of the latter’s victory in the US presidential elections. Officials quoted by the Kyodo agency point out that the Tokyo government wants to organize a face-to-face meeting between Trump and Ishiba soon, appointed on October 1st and aiming to have enough support in Parliament to be confirmed in office after the LDP’s defeat in the general elections. Someone is talking about a face-to-face already this month. A bilateral meeting in November is “probable”, writes the Asahi Shimbun.
“The alliance between Japan and the US will be stronger with its strong leadership”, Ishiba wrote on X in the past few hours. Then this morning, reports the Kyodo agency, he confirmed that he had agreed with Trump to meet soon. The Prime Minister told reporters that he had “the impression” that the tycoon is “very cordial” and a person “with whom I can speak honestly”.
During the phone call that lasted about five minutes, Ishiba and Trump – Kyodo reports again – did not talk about the increase in defense spending by Japan or a further share of the costs for the US military presence in the country.
Former Defense Minister, Ishiba is known for having proposed the creation of an Asian security bloc, NATO style, and for his past considerations on the alliance with the US, convinced of the need to reshape the bilateral agreement on the status of US forces in Japan. The country hosts about 55,000.
In his first term, Kyodo recalls, Trump built a personal relationship with then-Prime Minister Shinzo Abe. And the latter ran to Trump Tower in 2016 when the tycoon was still president-elect waiting to be inaugurated at the White House.
