Some Japanese Fear Trump Will Concede Too Much To China

Posted: May 25th, 2017

By Kuni Miyake

Kuni Miyake is President of the Foreign Policy Institute, a private think-tank in Tokyo, Research Director for foreign and National Security Affairs at Canon Institute for Global Studies and a Visiting Professor at Ritsumeikan University.

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, after last year’s U.S. election, was quick to meet with President Donald Trump to seek reassurance on the strength of the U.S.-Japan alliance and find areas of economic cooperation after Trump’s rejection of the Trans-Pacific Partnership – seen as necessary for Japan’s economic revitalization. Tokyo has since sought clues on the direction of U.S. policy in East Asia. However, differing statements among Trump and his Cabinet officials have complicated this process. The Cipher Brief spoke to Kuni Miyake, President of the Tokyo-based think tank the Foreign Policy Institute.

The Cipher Brief: Shinzo Abe was the first world leader to meet with Donald Trump as President, and at the time, the visit was seen as a productive meeting between the two leaders. Have perceptions in Tokyo changed since then?

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