Japan and the US are key defence allies and each other's top foreign financiers

Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba on Thursday left for the United States ahead of what will be President Donald Trump's 2nd summit with a foreign leader considering that his go back to the White House.

Japan is among the closest allies of the United States in Asia with around 54,000 US military workers stationed in the nation.

Ishiba will be promoting peace of mind on the importance of the US-Japan alliance, as Trump's "America First" program risks intruding on the nations' trade and defence ties.

"It would be fantastic if we might verify that we will work together for the advancement this area and the world and for peace," Ishiba informed press reporters in Tokyo before leaving for the journey.

Japan's Nikkei paper said Thursday the pair will provide a joint declaration, which could vow to build a "golden era" of bilateral relations and bring the alliance to "brand-new heights".

Ishiba is anticipated to inform Trump that Japan will increase defence purchases from the United States, the Nikkei said.

Ishiba may also propose importing more US gas-- chiming with Trump's plan to "drill, infant, drill" while improving energy security for resource-poor Japan.

Since Japan has cut its liquefied gas (LNG) imports from Russia, it "frantically requires to open up brand-new sources of LNG, and other energy more broadly", Sheila Smith, senior fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations, told AFP.

"The intention is to present a win-win value proposal from Ishiba to the president," she said.

Trump will satisfy Ishiba in Washington on Friday-- just days after a joint press conference with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, where the US president triggered uproar with a proposal to take over the Gaza Strip.

The Japan summit could be less stunning, Smith said, as Trump "has a fairly strong commitment to the alliances in Asia".

- Taiwan danger -

Ishiba has stressed the value of US defence ties, indicating dangers on Japan's doorstep such as China pressing its claims of sovereignty on the self-ruled island of Taiwan.

Tokyo needs to "continue to protect the US dedication to the region, to prevent a power vacuum causing regional instability", Ishiba just recently informed parliament.

Trump and Ishiba are expected to affirm the significance of peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait, Japanese media said.

That would echo joint statements made by the last US president Joe Biden with previous Japanese prime ministers.

Concentrating on this point is "very essential" since Japan and the United States must work together to avoid a prospective crisis, said Takashi Shiraishi, an international relations specialist at the Prefectural University of Kumamoto.

As Japan and the United States renegotiate how to share the problem of defence costs, nevertheless, there are issues Trump could provide less money and push Japan to do more, Smith said.

"That's where ... the Ishiba-Trump relationship could get a bit sticky," she said.

- After Abe -

Also causing jitters is Trump's willingness to slap trade tariffs on significant trading partners China, Canada, and Mexico-- though he has delayed steps against the latter 2 countries pending talks.

"I hope Ishiba will show him there are other methods to attain economic security," such as working together on innovation, Shiraishi informed AFP.

One example is the Stargate drive, announced after Trump's January inauguration, to invest approximately $500 billion in AI facilities in the United States, led by Japanese tech financial investment leviathan SoftBank Group and US firm OpenAI.

Reports said the leaders could likewise talk about Nippon Steel's $14.9 billion bid to buy US Steel, which Biden blocked on national security premises.

Japan and the United States are each other's leading foreign financiers, and the Nikkei reported that the leaders will settle on producing an investment-friendly environment.

During his first term, Trump and Japan's then-prime minister Shinzo Abe delighted in warm relations.

As president-elect in December, vetlek.ru Trump likewise hosted Akie Abe, smfsimple.com the widow of Japan's assassinated ex-premier, for a supper with Melania Trump at their Florida house.

Trump developed a strong relationship with Abe, for whom Smith believes he had a "real fondness".

He will likely "see Ishiba through a various lens", said Smith, and "it will be more the state-to-state relationship, not the personal".

Ishiba, 68, will not be the very first Japanese VIP to fulfill the 78-year-old Trump face to face considering that he took workplace-- a difference held by SoftBank founder Masayoshi Son.