Vigorous actions by Trump 2.0
Donald Trump became the 47th American president on January 20. He is often portrayed as a terrible president by the media, which favors the Democratic Party and dislikes Trump. However, there is no need to be overly frightened of him; Trump is a businessman with an extremely logical way of thinking, and his “deals” are aimed at achieving his America First policy.
Trump released a list of his priorities right after taking office. On January 21, the Japan External Trade Organization (JETRO) posted an article on its website in the Brief Business Notes section, titled, “Trump Takes Office, Announces Priority Policy Fields.” It read:
“Trump named four priority policy fields: Make America Safe Again, Make America Affordable and Energy Dominant Again, Drain the Swamp, and Bring Back American Values. Make America Safe Again, the first category, focuses mainly on measures to deal with illegal immigration. It includes building the wall and ending asylum for illegal border crossers. Since his campaign, Trump has frequently stated that America needs hardline policies on illegal immigration. The GOP platform included 20 urgent promises, starting with, ‘Seal the border, and stop the migrant invasion’ and ‘Carry out the largest deportation operation in American history.’ This suggests these items have a high level of political priority. Make America Affordable and Energy Dominant Again includes declaring an energy emergency and withdrawing from the Paris Climate Accord for a second time. As part of Drain the Swamp, Trump ‘will freeze bureaucrat hiring except in essential areas’ and ‘pause burdensome and radical regulations not yet in effect that Biden announced.’ In general, executive order regulations can be repealed by other executive orders. Within a specific period of time, government regulations can also be invalidated via the Congressional Review Act (CRA) with the approval of Congress. Under Bring Back American Values, ‘The President will establish male and female as biological reality and protect women from radical gender ideology.’” “Trade policy is only mentioned once under Make America Affordable and Energy Dominant Again: ‘President Trump will announce the America First Trade Policy.’ In his Inaugural Address, Trump stated, ‘I will immediately begin the overhaul of our trade system to protect American workers and families.’ The only specific detail was, ‘For this purpose, we are establishing the External Revenue Service to collect all tariffs, duties, and revenues.’ He did not mention topics like baseline tariffs between 10 and 20%, additional tariffs on Mexico and Canada, or raising additional tariffs on China. Trump made no announcements about additional tariffs during his first day in office. According to the news media (The Wall Street Journal digital version; January 20, 2025), Trump will order an investigation on issues such as relieving America’s constant trade deficit, unfair trade policies by other countries, and foreign exchange policy. He will also call for an assessment of compliance with the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) and the 2020 Phase One economic and trade agreement between the United States and China.”
On February 1, Trump signed executive orders imposing an additional 25% tariff on imports from Canada and Mexico and an additional tariff of 10% on imports from China, beginning on February 4. The global stock market plummeted on Monday, February 3, and the Nikkei Stock Average fell by more than 1,000 yen. During his meetings with Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on February 3, Trump agreed to put off the tariffs for 30 days, restoring calm to markets across the world. In contrast, China announced retaliatory measures including additional tariffs on American coal, liquefied natural gas (LNG), and trucks, along with export regulations on rare metals. At this point, we cannot predict what will happen in this trade war between the U.S. and China.
Japan made a skillful move by supporting the Alaska LNG project
The Nikkei website posted an article about the Japanese government’s actions on February 2, titled, “Japan-U.S. Summit: Prime Minister to Ask Trump to Visit Japan in 2025.”
“When Prime Minister Ishiba Shigeru meets with Trump, Ishiba is expected to ask Trump to visit Japan by the end of 2025. He will explain Japan’s efforts to strengthen its defense capabilities, tell Trump that Japan is the largest direct investor in the U.S., and share his positive stand on importing American LNG.” “This meeting in Washington, D.C. will be Trump’s first summit after his inauguration on January 20. It is aimed at enhancing the Japan-U.S. alliance through cooperation in a broad range of fields, such as security, the economy, and technology. Arrangements are underway to release a joint declaration after the meeting.” “Ishiba is prepared to discuss importing more American energy, including shale gas produced in the U.S. This aligns with Trump, who has stated that America will increase its oil and natural gas production.”
Reuters posted an article about LNG on its website on January 31: “Discussing Possible Japanese Support for Alaska LNG Development: Interest From American Trump Administration.” The Japanese version reads:
“The Japanese government is discussing the possibility of supporting the gas development plan in Alaska, which has a scale of 44 billion dollars (6.8 trillion yen). American President Trump is eager to carry out this project. Japan is aiming to prevent friction with the new government, which is concerned about the American trade deficit.” “According to an involved party, Japan hopes to reduce America’s 56-billion-dollar trade deficit with Japan and remove the threat of tariffs implemented by the Trump government.” “Japan sees this as one card it may play against the Trump administration.”
Trump is using tariffs as a tool to carry out his “deals.” I think the Japanese government is doing a smart thing regarding the Alaska gas pipeline by attempting to stave off tariffs while going along with Trump’s requests.
Trump views additional economic sanctions as a way to end Russia’s war
Trump is known for his uncompromising attitude on trade issues, but he has not displayed a hardline stance in all cases; for instance, he met with Russian President Vladimir Putin and North Korean Supreme Leader Kim Jong Un during his first term. In fact, Trump is the first American president since Jimmy Carter who has not started a new war. It seems like Trump has utilized “deals” to force compromises in the foreign policy field while doing all he can to avoid tough measures like the use of military force. Trump has said the Ukraine war would not have broken out if he were president, and that he could end it in 24 hours. The BBC NEWS JAPAN website posted an article on January 23, titled, “Trump Demands Putin Stop ‘Ridiculous War’ in Ukraine, Warns of New Sanctions if He Does Not Comply.” The Japanese version of this article reads:
“American President Donald Trump warned on the 22nd that he will place high tariffs and additional sanctions on Russia if Russian President Vladimir Putin does not put a stop to the war in Ukraine.” “At a press conference on the 21st, Trump said he intends to speak with Putin in the very near future, and mentioned the possibility of imposing additional tariffs if Putin does not come to the table for this conversation.” “On the 22nd, Trump went a step further in his post on Truth Social. He wrote, ‘I’m going to do Russia, whose Economy is failing, and President Putin, a very big FAVOR.’” “‘Settle now, and STOP this ridiculous War! IT’S ONLY GOING TO GET WORSE. If we don’t make a “deal,” and soon, I have no other choice but to put high levels of Taxes, Tariffs, and Sanctions on anything being sold by Russia to the United States, and various other participating countries.’” “Furthermore, he wrote, ‘Let’s get this war, which never would have started if I were President, over with!’ ‘It’s time to “MAKE A DEAL.’”
Trump is trying to make a “deal” to force Putin to end Russia’s war with Ukraine. However, the U.S. has already placed a considerable number of economic sanctions on Russia, and it is unclear how this “deal” will turn out.
Japan should use its expanded defense budget to grow the arms industry
Trump 1.0 called for America’s allies to bear larger burdens in the security field, and I think we must assume he will do a similar thing during this term. Of course, Japan remains one of America’s most essential partners, and I have no doubt that he will ask Japan to shoulder a suitable amount of responsibility. The Nikkei published an article about defense spending on December 27, titled, “Defense Budget Draft: Largest Amount of 8.7 Trillion Yen, Trump May Pressure Japan to Increase Amount.”
“The government made a Cabinet decision on the FY2025 defense budget draft, which includes funds for reorganizing the U.S. Forces Japan. It totaled 8.7005 trillion yen, the largest amount in history, including expenses for equipment required to obtain counterstrike abilities and funding to improve treatment given to Japan Self-Defense Forces (JSDF) officials. The budget is being expanded by one trillion yen each year according to the defense build-up plan. Some believe the new Trump administration will put further pressure on Japan to increase this amount.” “The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) is apparently considering a proposal for members to hike defense spending goals to 3% by 2030. The Financial Times, a British newspaper, said on its website that Trump intends to ask for this to be raised to 5%.” “Elbridge Colby formerly served as deputy assistant secretary of defense for strategy and force development, and is nominated as the new under secretary of defense for policy, the third-highest position in the U.S. Department of Defense. Colby has asserted that Japan should increase its defense budget to equal 3% of the gross domestic product (GDP). Trump also pressured Japan to hike defense spending during his first term (2017 – 2021), and it is possible he will do the same thing in his second term.”
Underneath Prime Minister Kishida Fumio, Japan decided to increase its defense spending to 2% of the GDP in FY2027. The amount has been gradually increased, but it may still be insufficient. In addition, Japan should not use this larger amount of money simply to purchase American weapons and pay for the U.S. forces in Japan. Japan absolutely must have an independent military as an autonomous nation, which requires independent weapons. We have to buy more domestically produced weapons and promote them as exports to other countries to grow our arms industry.
Creating a mutually beneficial Japan-U.S. alliance and transforming the JSDF into a military
The “three security documents” released in December 2022 specify that Japan will obtain counterstrike capabilities, and the budget draft includes funds for this purpose. However, the JSDF’s actions are limited under the current constitution based on the illogical concept of “exclusively defense-oriented policy.” It is unclear to what degree the JSDF could exercise these counterstrike capabilities in the event of an emergency. I think the Japanese government’s actions have so far been limited to avoiding wars with neighboring countries and making half-hearted efforts to solve territorial issues. This is why South Korea has effective control over Takeshima and why China repeatedly violates Japan’s marine territory near the Senkaku Islands. Even if Japan possesses many weapons, they will not mean anything unless it displays a resolute stance when dealing with foreign nations.
While also engaged in my business, I have worked to express my views and revive a sense of national pride because I want to change these circumstances. I believe that we must learn accurate information about modern Japanese history, feel a sense of confidence and pride in our nation, be informed about the international community, and think about what steps to take. Next, we must elect pro-Japan politicians – not members of the U.S. or China factions – and build a country where bureaucrats work to fulfill our interests. We cannot ensure Japan’s safety by extolling the ideal of peace according to Article 9 of the constitution. Despite the Japan-U.S. alliance, there is no chance the U.S. would fight on our behalf unless we are ready to join the battle first. There is no true or equal alliance if America is meant to come to our defense when Japan is attacked, but Japan does not have to fight for America’s sake. And without an equal alliance, we cannot say that Japan is a genuinely independent nation. We must revise the constitution to change this and position the JSDF as an actual military.
Now that Trump is in office, it is likely that he will make even more harsh demands of Japan going forward. Because Japan is the biggest investor in America and its important security partner, I think we could find common ground by making “deals” with the U.S. The most serious threat for the U.S. and Japan is China – Japan must start by strengthening its alliance with the U.S. to stand against the Chinese threat while striving to become a truly independent nation.
February 18 (Tuesday), 6:00 p.m.
