President Trump announced on Wednesday that his administration has made significant progress in trade negotiations with Japan, marking the Asian nation as the first of many expected participants in discussions in the coming weeks.
In a post on Truth Social, the president expressed, “A Great Honor to have just met with the Japanese Delegation on Trade. Big Progress!” However, he refrained from disclosing specific details about the discussions that occurred behind closed doors.
Earlier that day, Trump revealed that he would be meeting with Japanese officials to negotiate various issues including tariffs, the cost of military support, and ‘TRADE FAIRNESS.’
He wrote, “I will attend the meeting, along with Treasury & Commerce Secretaries. Hopefully something can be worked out which is good (GREAT!) for Japan and the USA!”
This meeting transpired just a day after the White House reported that it had received offers from at least 15 countries for customized trade agreements following Trump’s April 9 announcement of a 90-day pause on planned reciprocal tariffs.
Furthermore, over 75 other countries have expressed interest in initiating talks with the U.S. administration.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, who is expected to lead discussions with Tokyo’s chief trade negotiator Ryosei Akazawa, has noted that countries that act swiftly to engage with the U.S. will enjoy a “first mover advantage” in securing favorable trade deals.
In addition to Japan, other nations such as Australia, India, South Korea, Vietnam, and the United Kingdom are anticipated to be the focus of Bessent’s early efforts in trade negotiations.
Israel and Vietnam have previously offered to eliminate their tariff rates; however, Trump has remained noncommittal about whether such proposals would be deemed satisfactory.
Under Trump’s
image source from：https://nypost.com/2025/04/16/world-news/japan-to-kick-off-tariff-negotiations-with-trump-in-washington/
