The White House has avoided taking sides amid rising tensions between Japan and China, saying that U.S. President Donald Trump can sustain a “good working relationship” with Beijing while maintaining a “very strong alliance” with Japan.
Speaking at a news conference Thursday in Washington, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt called Japan “a great ally of the United States,” pointing to robust trade ties and Trump’s good personal relationship with Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi.
“With respect to China, the president also has a good working relationship with President Xi (Jinping), which he believes is a good thing for our country, and he believes that the United States should be in a position to have a good working relationship with China while maintaining our very strong alliance with Japan,” Leavitt said.
AloJapan.com