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

Japanese Prime Ishiba on Thursday left for the United States ahead of what will be President Donald Trump's second top 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 pushing for peace of mind on the significance of the US-Japan alliance, as Trump's "America First" program risks encroaching on the countries' 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 reporters in Tokyo before leaving for the journey.

Japan's Nikkei paper said Thursday the pair will release a joint statement, which might vow to construct a "golden age" of bilateral relations and wolvesbaneuo.com bring the alliance to "new heights".

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

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

Since Japan has cut its liquefied gas (LNG) imports from Russia, it "desperately needs to open new sources of LNG, and other energy more broadly", bytes-the-dust.com Sheila Smith, senior fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations, informed AFP.

"The intention is to provide a win-win worth 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 triggered uproar with a proposition to take control of the Gaza Strip.

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

- Taiwan risk -

Ishiba has actually worried the importance 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 leading to regional instability", Ishiba recently told parliament.

Trump and Ishiba are anticipated to verify the value 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.

Focusing on this point is "incredibly essential" since Japan and the United States must collaborate to avoid a prospective crisis, said Takashi Shiraishi, an international relations professional at the Prefectural University of Kumamoto.

As Japan and the United States renegotiate how to share the burden of defence expenses, nevertheless, there are concerns Trump might provide less money 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 significant trading partners China, Canada, and Mexico-- though he has actually delayed measures against the latter 2 nations pending talks.

"I hope Ishiba will reveal him there are other methods to attain financial security," such as cooperating on technology, Shiraishi informed 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 leviathan SoftBank Group and US firm OpenAI.

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

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

During his first term, Trump and Japan's then-prime minister Shinzo Abe enjoyed 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 developed a strong relationship with Abe, for whom Smith thinks 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 personally because he took workplace-- a distinction held by SoftBank founder Masayoshi Son.