Trump hails Japan’s Takaichi during talks on trade, critical minerals

U.S. President Donald Trump on Tuesday lauded Japan’s first female prime minister, Sanae Takaichi, during talks in Tokyo, welcoming her commitment to accelerate Japan’s military buildup and overseeing the signing of new agreements on trade and critical minerals.

Takaichi a close ally of Trump’s late friend and golfing partner, former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe reportedly told Trump she would nominate him for the Nobel Peace Prize, according to White House spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt.

Sources familiar with the discussions said the new Japanese leader is also expected to announce a $550 billion investment package, including shipbuilding projects and increased imports of U.S. soybeans, natural gas, and pickup trucks.

Analysts believe these commitments could ease potential U.S. pressure on Tokyo to spend even more on defense amid rising tensions with China.

Takaichi has already pledged to boost defense spending to 2% of GDP as part of her government’s long-term strategy.

“It’s a very strong handshake,” Trump remarked as the two leaders posed for photographs at the Akasaka Palace in central Tokyo.

“Everything I’ve heard from Shinzo and others tells me you’ll be one of Japan’s great prime ministers,” Trump said, congratulating Takaichi on becoming the country’s first woman to hold the office.

Takaichi gifted Trump Abe’s putter, a golf bag signed by Japanese major winner Hideki Matsuyama and a gold leaf golf ball, according to photos posted on X by Trump’s assistant Margo Martin.

DEAL ON CRITICAL MINERALS SIGNED

Trump also praised Japan’s efforts to purchase more U.S. defence equipment, while Takaichi said Trump’s role in securing ceasefires between Cambodia and Thailand, and Israel and Palestinian militants, were “unprecedented” achievements.

Takaichi followed other world leaders to recommended Trump for the Peace Prize he has long said he is worthy of.

The leaders then signed an agreement to support the supply of critical minerals and rare earths, as the countries seek to wean reliance off China’s chokehold on the materials crucial for a wide range of products from smartphones to fighter jets.

The deal aims to jointly identify projects of interest in areas such as magnets and batteries over the next six months and work together to develop stockpiles of key minerals among other measures.

Trump was last at the palace, an ornate residence built in a European style, in 2019 for talks with Abe, who was assassinated in 2022.

After lunch with Takaichi there, Trump met with relatives of people abducted by North Korea in the 1960s and 1970s to train its spies and their relatives.

While some were later repatriated, Japan continues to press Pyongyang for a full accounting of all the abductees and the return of any who remain alive, a cause championed by Abe.

“The United States is with them all the way,” Trump said after greeting the families.

The U.S. leader began his visit on Monday with a meeting at the Imperial Palace with Japanese Emperor Naruhito .

VISIT U.S. NAVAL BASE

Takaichi’s gifts to Trump and repeated references to Abe are aimed at evoking memories of a close bond forged over hours the pair spent golfing together during Trump’s first term.

Abe was assassinated in 2022, with the trial of his assailant coincidentally beginning in the western city of Nara on Tuesday.

A similar close relationship with the leader of Japan’s key security and trade partner could help Takaichi bolster her weak political position at home.

Though she has seen a surge in public support since becoming prime minister, her coalition government is two votes shy of a majority in parliament’s lower house.

Trump and Takaichi will later visit the U.S. naval base in Yokosuka near Tokyo, which is home to the aircraft carrier USS George Washington, part of the U.S. military’s powerful presence in the region.

Trump will then meet business leaders in Tokyo, before travelling on Wednesday to South Korea.

In talks there with Chinese President Xi Jinping, Trump said he hopes to seal a trade war truce between the world’s two biggest economies.