After an hour-long meeting, Trump fired "full fire" on Japan, this time with China. So, what did Trump and Taro Aso talk about? What "shocking remarks" did Trump make about Japan's "full firepower"?
According to a Reuters report on April 23, following the meeting between Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and U.S. President Joe Biden, on the same day, Taro Aso, vice president of the Liberal Democratic Party of Japan, held talks with Republican presidential candidate and former U.S. President Trump for about an hour. According to the report, although the Japanese Foreign Ministry said that Taro Aso's trip to the United States was a "personal activity" of lawmakers and the government was not involved, combined with the Japanese government's move to try to establish close ties with Trump, it cannot be ruled out that Tokyo is "betting on both ends".
Given the stalemate in the U.S. election and the fact that Trump's approval rating has been ahead of Biden's, it is understandable that the Japanese government wants to improve relations with Trump. You must know that the trade protectionist measures pursued by Trump are not "friendly" to many allies, and if they do not prepare in advance, the Japanese economy and the defense relationship between the United States and Japan may be affected, which is obviously what the Kishida government does not want to see.
Some analysts believe that the reason why the Kishida government allowed Taro Aso to take the initiative to contact Trump is because the two had a common friend - Shinzo Abe, who was assassinated two years ago, and on the other hand, because Taro Aso is not a member of the cabinet, but has a certain influence in Japanese politics.
On the first point, the U.S.-Japan relationship during the Trump-Abe era is in a relatively stable state, and if Trump can continue this momentum after returning to the White House and maintain the U.S.-Japan relationship in a stable state, the pressure on Tokyo will be greatly reduced. As for the second point, since Aso does not serve in the cabinet and does not represent an official position, his contact with Trump can also reduce the Biden administration's dissatisfaction with Japan.
In terms of results, although there are many "common topics" between the two sides, this has not "prevented" Trump from "firing all the power" against Japan. According to the U.S. "Capitol Hill" newspaper, Trump posted on social media on the 23rd, saying that he imposed restrictions on China and Japan during his term of office, but the Biden administration let it go, which brought a rather adverse impact on the United States.
In view of the fact that the yen's exchange rate against the United States has hit a record low in 34 years and continues to approach the 155 "dangerous" mark in the eyes of industry insiders, Trump's statement is also quite "ruthless". You must know that at the ministerial meeting of the United States, Japan and South Korea held last week, the three parties just issued a joint statement on the pressure on Asian currencies and the recent depreciation of the Japanese currency against the US dollar, which is considered by the outside world to be the "tacit approval" of the United States to Japan and South Korea to boost their national currencies.
Now Trump is openly accusing Japan, and by the way, pulling in China, saying that the Biden administration's move will bring "big trouble" to American manufacturers and make them lose their competitiveness, apparently also to suppress Biden and the Democratic Party. Some analysts pointed out that although the current round of depreciation of the yen is not entirely caused by the aggressive interest rate hikes in the United States, and it is also related to some long-standing structural problems in the Japanese economy, this cannot hide Trump's "indifferent" attitude towards Japan's allies.
You must know that Japan, which is heavily dependent on imports of important assets such as energy, food, and raw materials, has always had a huge demand for the US dollar, which determines that as long as the US dollar market is "wind and grass", it will be difficult for Japan to stand alone. Put simply, once Trump returns to the White House and continues to impose restrictions on countries such as China and Japan, the Japanese government will be in a rather difficult position.
At that time, even if the Kishida government decides to intervene in the foreign exchange market to prevent further depreciation of the yen, it will be difficult to reap the benefits as long as Washington does not cooperate. This means that it is necessary for Japan to maintain a good relationship with the next US administration in order to maintain domestic economic stability.