Japan and the US are essential 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 second summit with a foreign leader given 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 country.

Ishiba will be promoting reassurance on the value of the US-Japan alliance, as Trump's "America First" program threats trespassing on the nations' trade and defence ties.

"It would be terrific if we could verify that we will interact for the advancement this area and the world and for peace," Ishiba told press reporters in Tokyo before leaving for the trip.

Japan's Nikkei newspaper said Thursday the pair will provide a joint declaration, orcz.com which might vow to develop a "golden era" of bilateral relations and bring the alliance to "new heights".

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

Ishiba might likewise propose importing more US natural gas-- chiming with Trump's plan to "drill, child, drill" while enhancing energy security for resource-poor Japan.

Since Japan has cut its melted natural 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 meet Ishiba in Washington on Friday-- just days after a joint press conference with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, where the US president with a proposition to take over the Gaza Strip.

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

- Taiwan hazard -

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

Tokyo should "continue to protect the US dedication to the area, to prevent a power vacuum resulting in local instability", Ishiba recently informed parliament.

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

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

Concentrating on this point is "exceptionally essential" since Japan and the United States must work together to prevent a possible crisis, said Takashi Shiraishi, a worldwide relations expert at the Prefectural University of Kumamoto.

As Japan and the United States renegotiate how to share the burden of defence expenses, however, there are issues Trump might offer less cash and push Japan to do more, Smith said.

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

- After Abe -

Also causing jitters is Trump's desire to slap trade tariffs on major trading partners China, Canada, accc.rcec.sinica.edu.tw and Mexico-- though he has actually postponed measures against the latter two nations pending talks.

"I hope Ishiba will reveal him there are other ways to attain economic security," such as working together on technology, Shiraishi told AFP.

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

Reports said the leaders might also go over Nippon Steel's $14.9 billion quote to buy US Steel, which Biden obstructed on nationwide security premises.

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

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

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

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

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

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