<figure id="attachment_462428" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-462428" style="width: 3375px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><a href="#" data-ident_hash="6a40523d"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/fridaydigital/image/private/t_article_image/wpmedia/2026/03/419615e61fd620eefd23f33338fbd3fe.jpg" alt=""></a><figcaption id="caption-attachment-462428" class="wp-caption-text">Prime Minister Takaichi manages to get through his summit meeting with President Trump, but &#8230;&#8230;</figcaption></figure>
<h2><span class="strongInContent"> The &#8220;souvenir&#8221; he brought to the U.S.</span></h2>
<p><span class="strongInContent"> &#8220;I believe that only Donald can bring peace and prosperity to the world.&#8221;</span></p>
<p> Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi (65) has been all over US President Trump (79). Prime Minister Takaichi is feared as &#8220;scary&#8221; within the Liberal Democratic Party, and the gap between the two has caused a lot of controversy in Nagata-cho.</p>
<p><span class="strongInContent"> He is like a different person. &#8230;&#8230;</span></p>
<p> Some in Nagata-cho were surprised at the gap between the two.</p>
<div data-friday-ad-slot="AD_inArticle"></div>
<p> Upon arriving in the U.S. for the summit meeting, Prime Minister Takaichi walked up to Mr. Trump, smiled, and hugged him. At the meeting held in the early morning hours of March 20 (Japan Standard Time), they discussed the issues with a serious expression on their faces.</p>
<p> At the meeting, Takaichi said</p>
<p><span class="strongInContent"> We explained in detail what we can and cannot do within the limits of Japanese law,&#8221; Prime Minister Takaichi commented.</span></p>
<p> I explained them in detail,&#8221; he commented.</p>
<p> At the same time, they also gave the U.S. &#8220;souvenirs,&#8221; including imports of U.S. oil and natural gas from Alaska, additional purchases of defense weapons, joint projects such as rare earth projects, and the construction of a small nuclear reactor, in order to reduce Japan&#8217;s energy dependence on the Middle East.</p>
<p> At the dinner that preceded the meeting, the two men also mentioned the IndyCar Series, which will be held in August in Washington, D.C., under Mr. Trump&#8217;s leadership.</p>
<p><span class="strongInContent"> The IndyCar Series will be held in Washington, D.C. in August,&#8221; he said. The IndyCar Series is sponsored by NTT, a Japanese company, which is a symbol of the friendship between Japan and the United States. I wish you great success in this great race.</span></p>
<div data-friday-ad-slot="AD_inArticle"></div>
<p> He appealed to the audience. The word &#8220;Koichi fawning&#8221; has emerged on the Internet in response to the excessive praise in the midst of the war spreading throughout the Middle East. Trump said at the meeting, &#8220;Who knows more about surprise attacks than Japan?</p>
<p><span class="strongInContent"> Who knows more about the surprise attack than Japan?　Why didn&#8217;t you tell us about Pearl Harbor?&#8221;</span></p>
<p> The fact that Trump brushed it off with a snide remark, &#8220;Why didn&#8217;t you tell me about Pearl Harbor?</p>
<div data-friday-nextpage-lead=" What is Prime Minister Koichi&#39;s &quot;aim&quot;? ......"></div>
<h2><span class="strongInContent">Appealing to the world as a &#8220;cooperative partner&#8221; with Japan</span></h2>
<p><span class="strongInContent"> The prime minister, who has a reputation for being &#8220;scary&#8221; within his own party, has changed. Needless to say, the strategy is the result of much deliberation. One of the characteristics of the U.S. today is that President Trump has absolute authority. In other words, if we can win over President Trump, he will be less inclined to &#8220;bully&#8221; us and make reckless demands. In preparation for the meeting, we were thoroughly analyzing Trump with various parties,&#8221; said a Liberal Democratic Party official.</span></p>
<p> President Trump likes people who respect him. In the case of the recent attack on Iran, U.S. intelligence officials had warned him in advance about the probability of a counterattack by Iran and the spread of damage to neighboring countries, but he turned a deaf ear to their warnings.</p>
<div data-friday-ad-slot="AD_inArticle"></div>
<p><span class="strongInContent"> In the end, however, he decided to join the war based on the words of his close aide, who is a hardliner against Iran. That&#8217;s all there is to it. He also drew on the expertise of the late Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, who had built a good relationship with President Trump. The fact that the interpreter for Prime Minister Takaichi was the same interpreter who worked with Prime Minister Abe when he came to the U.S. is a proof of this.</span></p>
<p> The Japan-U.S. summit meeting was said to have been the most &#8220;tense&#8221; in history. Political commentator Harumi Arima told this website, &#8220;Before he came to the U.S., what did he expect from President Trump?</p>
<p><span class="strongInContent"> Before I came to the U.S., I was worried about what President Trump would impose on me, but the fact that he did not say anything about dispatching the Self-Defense Forces was a big deal. The U.S. wanted to show the world that it is cooperating with Japan, which is an ally of the U.S., so they did not dare to make a request that would be refused. Some of the opposition parties were very harsh, saying, &#8220;What are you trying to flatter us for?</span></p>
<p> He added, &#8220;The US has been a major player in the cease-fire negotiations.</p>
<p> Regarding the ceasefire, it is reported that the U.S., through its intermediary Pakistan, has presented Iran with a 15-point ceasefire plan. However, it is said that there is a wide gap in the terms of the ceasefire between the two countries.</p>
<p><span class="strongInContent"> Japan is expected to play a mediating role. Japan is a partner of the United States, and at the same time, it has established good relations with Iran. Above all, Japan is the only country in the world to have experienced the atomic bombing. If Japan plays a central role in mediating, its international reputation will be boosted. Prime Minister Takaichi&#8217;s circle is seriously searching for a &#8220;drop-off point&#8221; for the war,&#8221; said a reporter in charge of politics for a national newspaper.</span></p>
<div data-friday-ad-slot="AD_inArticle"></div>
<p> Some in the LDP are calling for talks with Iran&#8217;s leaders this time. Will Prime Minister Takaichi be able to increase his presence not only in Japan but also in the world?</p>


 Takeshi Kinugawa

 Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi (65) went all out in her praise of U.S. President Trump (79). Prime Minister Takaichi is "scared" within the LDP.

Even if it is called “flirtation with Takaichi”… Prime Minister Takaichi hugged President Trump at the Japan-U.S. summit meeting.

Access Ranking