President Trump on Monday met with Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi shortly after she became the country’s first female prime minister, where the two touted the strength of the U.S.-Japan alliance.
Trump and Takaichi met at the Akasaka Palace in Tokyo one week after Takaichi officially took over as prime minister. Trump congratulated her on becoming the nation’s first woman to hold the position, calling it a “big deal.”
“I want to just let you know, anytime you have any question, any doubt, anything you want, any favors you need, anything I can do to help Japan, we will be there. We are an ally at the strongest level,” Trump said.
Takaichi worked closely with the late Shinzo Abe, Japan’s former prime minister, who built a strong friendship and working relationship with Trump during the president’s first term.
“He spoke so well of you, long before we met, and I’m not surprised to see that you are now the Prime Minister — and he would be very happy to know that, and I congratulate you on behalf of the United States,” Trump said.
Takaichi praised Trump for his efforts to broker peace in the Middle East and for his role in securing a detente between Thailand and Cambodia. The prime minister announced that Japan would gift 250 cherry blossom trees to the United States as part of ongoing celebrations marking 250 years since America’s founding.
The two leaders were expected to discuss trade during their meeting in Tokyo. The two nations struck a trade agreement in July that imposed a 15 percent tariff on Japanese goods and included a commitment for Japan to invest $550 billion in the U.S. Trump had previously threatened to hit Japan with a 25 percent tariff on its goods.
Japan is one of the United States’s largest trading partners. The U.S. exported roughly $80 billion in goods to Japan in 2024, while Japan exported roughly $148 billion to the United States.
