The letter stunned some officials in Japan, a security ally for seven decades and a key partner in U.S. efforts to counter an increasingly assertive China.
But the deadlocked trade negotiations have frustrated the American president — who recently called Japan “so spoiled.” Now, Tokyo is learning that being one of Washington’s best friends doesn’t carry much sway in Trump’s second term, analysts say.
“They’re coming to a very hard realization that Japan is not special enough to Trump,” said Mireya Solís, director of the Center for Asia Policy Studies at the Brookings Institution. “At the end of the day, when Trump sees deficits, he’s not thinking, ‘This is my close security partner.’ He sees deficits.”
It seemed like Japan was on good footing when it became one of the first countries to begin negotiations, in April. Washington wanted to strike a swift deal with Tokyo to use as leverage against China, which runs its biggest trade deficit, analysts say.v
