Ishiba eyes trade meeting around Trump's birthday before G7 meet, report says
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba is considering visiting Washington to meet U.S. President Donald Trump before a midmonth summit of Group of Seven nations as he seeks a trade deal, the Yomiuri Shimbun reported Sunday.
Japanese officials see signs of progress on easing Trump's tariffs after repeated visits by top tariff negotiator Ryosei Akazawa, and say the U.S. side has shown strong interest in Japan's proposals, the Yomiuri said, citing Japanese government officials it did not name.
The idea of holding an Ishiba-Trump summit before the G7 meeting, which is scheduled to begin June 15 in Canada, gained traction because it would allow for more focused discussions than if they were to hold talks at the leaders' confab.
Since Trump's 79th birthday is on June 14, some within the Japanese government have said that an agreement announced on this date would have special symbolic significance for the U.S. president, who is also scheduled to view a military parade celebrating the U.S. Army's 250th anniversary in the Washington the same day.
Economy Minister Akazawa will return to the U.S. capital for more talks later this week, after which a decision will be made on a U.S. trip by Ishiba, the newspaper said.
The White House and the Prime Minister's Office did not immediately respond to requests for comment outside business hours.
Speaking to reporters upon returning on Sunday from his visit to Washington for a fourth round of negotiations, Akazawa said talks are progressing toward an agreement but that the form of negotiations before the G7 summit was yet to be decided.
Japan, a major U.S. ally, faces what Trump calls a reciprocal tariff of 24% from next month unless it can negotiate a bilateral deal. Tokyo is also scrambling to find ways to get Washington to exempt its automakers, Japan's biggest industry, from 25% tariffs on automobiles.
Trump said on Friday he planned to double the tariffs on all imported steel and aluminum to 50%.
Akazawa declined to comment on those tariffs on Sunday. He said U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent did not mention them during the most recent negotiations.
Akazawa said Friday the two sides had "agreed to accelerate the talks and hold another round ahead of the G7 summit," to be held from June 15 to 17 in Canada.
But he said there would be no deal without U.S. concessions on tariffs, including on autos.
Ishiba has said bilateral negotiations were progressing on trade expansion, nontariff measures and economic security, while Tokyo has mentioned possible increases in its purchases of U.S. military equipment and energy, as well as cooperation on shipbuilding and repairing U.S. warships in Japan.
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