Trump’s Asia tour takes him to Japan ahead of pivotal meeting with China’s Xi

Geoff Bennett:

The U.S. and China said today they have agreed on a framework for a potential trade deal, once again trying to pull back from a trade war between the world's two largest economies. The announcement comes before a high-stakes meeting between President Trump and China's Xi Jinping later this week in South Korea. But,tonight, President Trump's tour through Asia takes him to Japan.

Nick Schifrin has more.

Nick Schifrin:

Today, President Trump received a royal welcome in Tokyo's Imperial Palace. The American president who's floated pursuing a third term praised the inheritor of the world's oldest hereditary monarchy.

Donald Trump, President of the United States: A great man, great man.

Nick Schifrin:

President Trump will soon meet the man he's called a great leader for perhaps the single most important meeting of his new term. President Trump predicts he and Chinese leader Xi Jinping will strike a trade deal that will focus in part on a rare critical resource whose production Beijing dominates.

China recently tightened restrictions on the export of heavy rare earth elements and powerful magnets. Beijing controls nearly all the world's processing of rare earth magnets, essential for everything from the United States' most advanced fighter jets to the world's leading electric vehicles.

A senior U.S. official tells "PBS News Hour," under a deal, China would pause those export restrictions for one year. Beijing would also resume purchases of American soybeans.

Scott Bessent, U.S. Treasury Secretary:

We had a very good meeting.

Nick Schifrin:

From behind President Trump on Air Force One, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent laid out the trade deal's framework.

Scott Bessent:

We discussed the wide, wide range of the things, from tariffs, trade, fentanyl, substantial purchase of U.S. agricultural products?

Question:

And rare earths?

Scott Bessent:

And rare earths.

Question:

But nothing has been agreed to yet?

(Crosstalk)

Donald Trump, President of the United States: We feel good.

Nick Schifrin:

They will also discuss Taiwan amid regional fears that President Trump would abandon the island for a good China trade deal.

In a statement following a phone call with Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said: "Earlier China-U.S. economic and trade ties had encountered new frictions, but in recent talks the two sides clarified their positions, enhanced mutual understanding and reached a framework consensus.

On North Korea, U.S. officials say they have no plans to repeat one of the president's most iconic first-term moments, though President Trump today said repeatedly he'd be open to it.

Donald Trump:

If he'd like to meet, I'm around. I will be in South Korea, so I could be right over there.

Question:

But what could the U.S. offer him at this point?

Donald Trump:

Well, we have sanctions. What? That's pretty big to start off with. I would say that's about as big as you get.

(Cheering)

Nick Schifrin:

But before Korea, President Trump meets with Japan's Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi just one week after she was sworn into office. It's a diplomatic test for Japan's first female leader and its most conservative since World War II.

And to talk about President Trump's meeting with Prime Minister Takaichi and what's at stake for U.S.-Japan relations, we turn to Kenji Kushida, senior fellow at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace.

Thanks very much. Welcome back to the "News Hour."

Prime Minister Takaichi and Japanese officials have talked about sweeteners to make sure that the prime minister's meeting with the president goes well, even talking about buying Ford F-150 trucks. Why is it important to the prime minister and to Japan that they create a positive personal relationship?

Kenji Kushida, Carnegie Endowment for International Peace: Yes, well, Japan's security depends in large part on the U.S. security umbrella, especially the nuclear umbrella that the U.S. provides for Japan.

And, at the same time, the U.S. has been Japan's biggest trading partner. But, of course, the tariffs hit and they hit at 25 percent and they hit a lot of Japan's major industries, especially automobiles and precision machinery and these things. So, economically, Japan is in a tight spot.

Prime Minister — Former Prime Minister Abe's personal relationship with Trump, where they got along really well, Prime Minister Takaichi has positioned herself as Abe's successor in economic policy, foreign policy, her sort of conservative stance, her rhetoric about becoming a strong Japan again.

And so her positioning herself as a successor in Abe, she hopes that she can translate that into a good personal relationship with President Trump.

Nick Schifrin:

She has accelerated Japan's promise to spend at least 2 percent of GDP on defense. But does that actually mean that she has advanced Japanese defense spending and can she meet even higher calls from the U.S. to spend even more?

Kenji Kushida:

Yes, the acceleration of expenditures for defense, part of that is actually just the weakening of the yen and the rising cost of everything else. So she actually hasn't actually spent a whole lot more very quickly compared to the initial plan.

That being said, she wants to aggressively spend government funds. So defense is a good place to do this. So, in a way, if the U.S. demands for greater defense expenditures, she's very willing and prepared to spend more because that's been her stance to begin with.

Nick Schifrin:

On the trade side, the U.S.-Japan trade agreement from earlier this year has Japan pledging to spend $550 billion in the United States, with the provision that the Trump administration selects the actual projects.

Is that a commitment that she can actually meet?

Kenji Kushida:

Yes, the $550 billion expenditure commitment is — in terms of amount, it's approximately Japan's entire tax revenue for a whole year. So it's an enormous amount.

But I think she is prepared to move forward on a lot of the commitments and demonstrate with the next step beyond just a pledge actual — some funding flowing to placate the U.S.

Nick Schifrin:

But is there even that level of interest required among Japanese investors in investing in the United States?

Kenji Kushida:

Yes, it's a mixed picture, but much of Japan doesn't feel like they have an option because the U.S. could then come back and say, if you're not actually investing the $550 billion, we're going to raise tariff rates. And that's going to hurt a lot more than a lot of the investment commitments.

Nick Schifrin:

And, finally, zooming out, some officials from East Asia have quietly been talking to me about their concern about the long-term reliability of the United States security umbrella, of the United States nuclear umbrella, especially if President Trump looks for a large trade deal with Chinese President Xi Jinping.

Are those concerns shared by Japanese officials?

Kenji Kushida:

Yes, certain parts of people in Japan do see U.S. potential unreliability as one of the big existential threats to Japan.

If Trump can claim that he solved East Asian security, he solved the Chinese security threat by, for example, saying, well, go ahead and you can have Taiwan, this would be a big issue for Japan. And Japan has solidly pledged their commitment to the U.S. And it's been described by some experts as there's no plan B.

So this actually helps Prime Minister Takaichi's arguments that big fiscal expenditures need to happen, strengthening of defense, and possibly even revising the Constitution to allow for a normal military does get some support.

Nick Schifrin:

Kenji Kushida of the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, thank you very much.

Kenji Kushida:

Thank you.