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Japan and the US are crucial defence allies and each other's top foreign investors

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

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

Ishiba will be pushing for reassurance 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 terrific if we might verify that we will collaborate for the development this area and the world and for peace," Ishiba informed 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 construct a "golden age" of bilateral relations and bring the alliance to "new heights".

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

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

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

"The objective is to present a win-win worth proposition from Ishiba to the president," she said.

Trump will satisfy Ishiba in Washington on Friday-- simply days after a joint interview with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, where the US president sparked outcry with a proposal to take control of the Gaza Strip.

The Japan summit might be less shocking, Smith said, as Trump "has a fairly strong dedication to the alliances in Asia".

- Taiwan risk -

Ishiba has worried the significance of US defence ties, indicating risks on Japan's doorstep such as China pushing its claims of sovereignty on the self-ruled island of Taiwan.

Tokyo must "continue to secure the US commitment to the area, to prevent a power vacuum causing regional instability", Ishiba just recently informed parliament.

Trump and Ishiba are anticipated to verify the significance of peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait, said.

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

Focusing on this point is "extremely essential" since Japan and the United States need to interact to prevent a potential crisis, said Takashi Shiraishi, a global relations specialist at the Prefectural University of Kumamoto.

As Japan and the United States renegotiate how to share the concern of defence expenses, however, there are concerns Trump could supply 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 actually postponed procedures against the latter 2 countries pending talks.

"I hope Ishiba will reveal him there are other ways to attain financial security," such as cooperating on innovation, Shiraishi informed AFP.

One example is the Stargate drive, announced after Trump's January inauguration, morphomics.science to invest up to $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 might also talk about Nippon Steel's $14.9 billion quote to purchase US Steel, which Biden blocked on nationwide security grounds.

Japan and the United States are each other's top foreign investors, and the Nikkei reported that the leaders will agree on creating an investment-friendly environment.

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

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

Trump constructed a strong relationship with Abe, for whom Smith thinks he had a "genuine fondness".

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

Ishiba, 68, will not be the very first Japanese VIP to satisfy the 78-year-old Trump in individual considering that he took office-- a distinction held by SoftBank founder Masayoshi Son.