Tariff Talks with U.S. Seen Influencing Japan Upper House Election

Newsfrom Japan

Politics

May 5, 2025 08:00 (JST)

Tokyo, May 5 (Jiji Press)–Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba will have to continue dealing with a host of difficult issues at home and abroad after the country’s Golden Week holiday period ends Tuesday.

The course of Japan-U.S. negotiations on the high tariff policy of the administration of U.S. President Donald Trump is the biggest of the challenges facing the Ishiba government.

The outcome of the ongoing bilateral negotiations will certainly have a major impact on this summer’s election for Japan’s House of Councillors, the upper chamber of the Diet, the country’s parliament, and may affect the fate of the Ishiba administration, political watchers say.

“We are discussing all (U.S.) tariff measures, including tariffs on automobiles, steel and aluminum,” Ishiba told reporters at his official residence Saturday, reiterating Tokyo’s stance of calling on the U.S. side to review its tariff measures.

The gap between Tokyo and Washington is large, however, as the U.S. side apparently plans to put so-called reciprocal tariffs on the agenda of the bilateral negotiations while not including automobile, steel and aluminum tariffs from the scope of topics.

[Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]

Jiji Press