U.S. President Donald Trump¡¯s last-minute Wednesday announcement of a suspension of new tariffs on Japan for three months was no doubt welcomed by Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba, as it gives his government breathing space to plan and formulate a more thorough response.
The sudden about-face by Trump on tariffs raises the more complicated question of how the already-unpopular Ishiba or even someone else ¡ª depending on the results of July¡¯s Upper House election ¡ª can diplomatically, but effectively, deal with the mercurial U.S. president not only on tariffs, but other politically thorny issues surrounding the larger U.S.-Japan relationship as well.
However, while there might be behind-the-scenes grumbling among Ishiba¡¯s allies and rivals within the Liberal Democratic Party about the best strategy for dealing with Trump, experts say it¡¯s unlikely to explode out in the open before the election, given the lack of a clear alternative to Ishiba as prime minister now, and a long-standing tradition in the ruling party of ensuring internal political strife stops at the water¡¯s edge.
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