A meeting between Donald Trump and Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba went so well that Japan has pledged to invest a staggering amount of money into the US.
Ishiba took a trip to Washington D.C and met with the new POTUS yesterday (February 7), where the two leaders are said to have had discussions spanning almost two hours in their first even face-to-face meeting.
Trump and Ishiba discussed everything; from the military and security, to economics and regional affairs.
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The president was said to be close with the late Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, but is yet to establish a relationship with Ishiba — who took office in October 2024.
In the lengthy meeting, Ishiba pledged to invest an eye-watering $1,000,000,000,000 into the US.
Meeting notes published by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan read: "The two leaders affirmed that Japan and the US are close partners in the economic field as well, with Japan being the world's largest investor in the US for five consecutive years.
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"Prime Minister Ishiba conveyed his willingness to cooperate together to elevate Japan’s investment in the US to an unprecedented amount of one trillion dollars, and President Trump strongly welcomed such investments by Japanese companies."
As to what the money will be going towards, Trump said: "Japan is committed to double its defense spending by 2027 compared to my first term.
"They've invested a lot of money, $300 billion in goods and services each year. And I'm pleased to say that this week, my administration approved nearly a billion dollars in foreign military sales to Tokyo."
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He also said that Japanese car manufacturer Nissan is 'going to be doing something very exciting about US Steel' – a company Japan wanted to acquire for $14.9 billion.
Instead, Japan will 'invest heavily' in the company, BBC News reports, without taking a majority stake.
While Trump strengthens his relationship with Japan, his rapport with China is somewhat strained in the wake of the new tariffs he's imposed on the country's goods.
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The tariff has been set at 10 percent, which game into force on February 4.
In response to the change, China plans on imposing similar tariffs on US goods coming into the country.
A statement from the country read: "Because Google is suspected of violating the Anti-Monopoly Law of the People's Republic of China, the State Administration for Market Regulation has initiated an investigation into Google in accordance with the law."
Topics: Donald Trump, Japan, Politics, Money, US News
Niamh Shackleton