Trump presses Japan's Abe over trade gap, upbeat on North Korea

Published May 27, 2019

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Tokyo - US President Donald Trump

pressed Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe on Monday to even out

a trade imbalance with the United States and said he was happy

with how things were going with North Korea but was in no rush

to reach a peace deal.

Trump said at a news conference with Abe after their summit

that his goal was to remove trade barriers to put US exports

on a fair footing in Japan. He said he hoped to have more to

announce on trade very soon and said he and Abe had agreed to

expand cooperation in human space exploration.

"We have an unbelievably large imbalance, as you know, trade

imbalance with Japan for many, many years, Japan having the big

advantage," Trump said.

"They are brilliant business people, brilliant negotiators,

and put us in a very tough spot. But I think we will have a deal

with Japan," he added.

Abe, for his part, said the two leaders had agreed to speed

up two-way trade talks, but dodged a question about timing.

Trump, who is on a four-day state visit to Japan meant to

showcase the alliance between the allies, said on Twitter on

Sunday that he expected big moves on trade would wait until

after Japan's upper house election in July.

"Trade-wise, I think we'll be announcing some things,

probably in August, that will be very good for both countries,"

Trump said on Monday at the start of the talks. "We'll get the

balance of trade, I think, straightened out rapidly."

Deputy Chief Cabinet Secretary Yasutoshi Nishimura told

reporters there was no agreement to reach a trade deal by

August.

Abe, who has developed a warm relationship with Trump since

the US leader came to office, stressed the closeness of ties.

"This visit of President Trump and Madame Trump is a golden

opportunity to clearly show the unshakable bond to the whole

world and inside Japan as well," Abe told the news conference.

Earlier, Trump was greeted by Emperor Naruhito and his

Harvard-educated wife at the imperial palace in Tokyo in a

formal welcome ceremony broadcast live on national television.

Trump is the first foreign dignitary to be received by the

monarch since the latter inherited the throne after his father,

Akihito, stepped down on April 30 in the first abdication by a

Japanese emperor in two centuries.

Trump has made clear he was pleased to have the honour of

the first reception with the emperor, who is hosting a state

dinner for the U.S. leader and his wife on Monday.

On Sunday, Trump spent what he said was "an incredible

evening" watching the Japanese national sport of sumo - where

nearly naked wrestlers grapple on a raised sand ring - after he

and Abe had bonded over hamburgers and golf.

FRIENDSHIP AND FRICTION

Abe and Trump have put on a show of friendship but have

policy disagreements over trade and North Korea.

Trump has threatened to target Japanese automakers with high

tariffs.

He has also spearheaded an expensive trade dispute with

China. That trade war between the world's two largest economies

has hurt markets worldwide and confounded US allies, including

Japan and the European Union, although those allies share U.S.

concerns about Chinese practices.

Trump told the news conference that Washington was not ready

to make a deal with Beijing but he expected on in the future.

"I believe that we will have a very good deal with China

sometime in the future. Because I don't believe that China can

continue to pay these really hundreds of billions of dollars in

tariffs," he said.

"You know businesses are leaving China, by the hundreds, by

the thousands, and going into areas that are not tariffed."

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Lu Kang told reporters in

Beijing that China's stance was consistent: all disputes should

be resolved through negotiations and China-U.S. consultations

"must be based on mutual respect, equality and mutual benefit”.

Trump also expressed optimism over prospects that North

Korea would give up its nuclear programme, and repeated that he

was not bothered by its recent missile tests.

"My people think it could have been a violation, as you

know. I view it differently – I view it as a man, perhaps he

wants to get attention. Perhaps not. Who knows? It doesn't

matter. All I know is that there have been no nuclear tests, no

ballistic missiles going out, no long-range missiles going out.

And I think that someday we'll have a deal," Trump said.

"I'm not in a rush," he added.

Trump also said he agreed with Kim that former US Vice

President Joe Biden, who has been critical of North Korea and is

now campaigning to become the Democratic Party candidate for the

2020 US presidential election, was a "low IQ individual".

Abe said he supported Trump's approach to Kim, but repeated

Japan's stance that recent short-range missile tests violated

UN Security Council resolutions.

The two leaders also discussed Iran. Japanese media have

said Abe was considering a trip there next month, to try to

soothe rising tension between Iran and the United States.

Also on Monday, Trump met families of Japanese citizens

kidnapped by North Korea and told the relatives that he would

work with Abe to bring the abductees home.

In 2002, North Korea admitted its agents had kidnapped 13

Japanese decades ago. Japan says 17 of its citizens were

abducted, five of whom were repatriated. North Korea has said

eight are dead and that another four never entered the country.

Abe has vowed not to rest until all the abductees come home. 

Reuters

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