US-Japan ties take centre stage as Trump meets Takaichi
US President Donald Trump and Japan’s first female Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi flew on his presidential helicopter to the nuclear-powered US aircraft carrier George Washington, docked at the Yokosuka navy base near Tokyo, where some 6,000 US sailors awaited. Japan hosts the largest concentration of US military power abroad.
Pumping her fist and giving a thumbs-up, Takaichi was embraced by Trump who introduced her as Japan’s “new and incredible prime minister”.
“We are now facing a security environment of unprecedented severity. Peace is defended not just through words, but by resolute determination and actions,” Takaichi said, adding she was committed to raising Japan’s own defence capabilities.
Earlier in the week, Takaichi told Prime Minister Anthony Albanese their two countries should “spearhead efforts” to create a free and open Indo-Pacific, in a veiled swipe at China’s increasingly assertive behaviour.
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