The national flags of Japan and the United States are seen in this file photo. (Mainichi)
BANFF, Canada (Kyodo) — Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba and U.S. President Donald Trump could meet in Canada on Monday on the sidelines of the Group of Seven leaders’ summit, a Japanese government source said.
Progress in ongoing bilateral tariff talks will be in focus at their second face-to-face meeting since Trump returned to the White House in January. The two have spoken by phone multiple times ahead of the meeting.
Ishiba and Trump are expected to follow up on the tariff negotiations conducted at the ministerial level in recent months aimed at reaching what the Japanese prime minister has described as a “mutually beneficial” deal.
Tokyo has been calling for Washington to shift its focus to boosting investment and jobs in the world’s largest economy, rather than imposing tariffs to reduce the massive U.S. trade deficit with Japan.
The leaders, who in their previous meeting in February agreed to aim for a “golden age” in Japanese-U.S. relations, are also likely to discuss deepening the long-standing security alliance amid China’s stepped-up military activities, and North Korea’s nuclear weapon and missile development programs.
AloJapan.com