Trump and Japan PM discuss tariffs, Israel’s attacks against Iran

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By Kanishka Singh

WASHINGTON (Reuters) -Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba and U.S. President Donald Trump held a phone call on Friday in which they discussed tariffs and Israel’s attacks against Iran, the Japanese foreign ministry said.

WHY IT’S IMPORTANT

Trump has sought to leverage his tariff threats to strike bilateral trade deals with many countries, including U.S. ally Japan. Japan will remain steadfast in its request for a review of U.S. tariffs and would not accept a partial agreement, Tokyo’s chief tariff negotiator Ryosei Akazawa said on Friday.

On the diplomatic front, the two leaders agreed remain in close communication on Israel’s strikes against Iran that began late on Thursday U.S. time and on Friday Middle East and Asia time.

Japan has condemned Israel’s strikes by calling them escalatory while the U.S. has called those a form of “unilateral action” and said Washington was not involved.

KEY QUOTES

“Prime Minister Ishiba reiterated Japan’s views on the U.S. tariff measures, taking into account the results of the Japan-U.S. Consultations on the U.S. Tariff Measures to date,” the Japanese foreign ministry said.

It added that the two leaders “concurred to accelerate the consultations between the ministers in charge in order to achieve a mutually beneficial agreement.”

A White House official confirmed from the U.S. side the call had taken place on Friday.

The Japanese foreign ministry added that the two leaders agreed on the importance of peace and stability in the Middle East.

CONTEXT

Trump and Ishiba are expected to meet in Canada on the sidelines of the Group of Seven meeting next week.

(Reporting by Kanishka Singh and David Brunnstrom in Washington; additional reporting by Steve HollandEditing by Diane Craft and Marguerita Choy)