Top Batter in Trump Diplomacy

Expecting first-come, first-served benefit, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe visited the room of United States President-elect, Donald Trump, on the top of a luxury tower in Manhattan on Thursday. They talked about friendship, golf or other chores of political leader, according to the information from Japanese media not based on official briefing. It was still not clear what was the benefit for Abe to meet Trump as the first national leader of the world after U.S. Presidential election.

Abe dropped in New York to meet Trump on his way to Lima, Peru, where the summit meeting of Asia-Pacific Economy Cooperation would be held. Security around Trump Tower was so heavy that Japanese media could not directly report the meeting. Abe left a comment that he was convinced in reliability of Trump as a leader. “It was a meeting in which I could have a conviction that Mr. Trump was reliable leader,” said Abe to the reporters. Trump was delighted with the starting of new friendship in his home, as he uploaded on his Facebook.

Japanese media mainly interested in two diplomatic issues, Trans-Pacific Partnership and bilateral security alliance. Mainichi Shimbun reported that Abe “seemed” to have explained how Japan-U.S. alliance contributed to peace and stability in Asia-Pacific region and insisted in the importance for maintaining free trade regime through TPP, to which Trump straightforwardly opposed in his Presidential campaign.

The experts in Japan on security issues focused on the fact that next Presidential National Security Advisor, Michael Flynn, was sitting aside of Trump in the meeting. One official in Japanese government expected maintenance of traditional concept on security with notion of importance of Japan-U.S. alliance. For them, importance of the alliance implies not requiring Japan heavy burden for keeping U.S. deterrence in Japan as Trump reiterated in his campaign.

It could merely be a demonstration for Trump to ensure that he was able to deal with diplomacy, choosing a poodle-like allied leader for his first counterpart. Exchanging expensive golf gears, the performance looked like successful in convincing American people of his ability to sit and talk calmly. Trump took advantage of the opportunity for diplomatic debut not only for himself, but Flynn who was reportedly picked to NSA as soon as the meeting convened.

The opposite parties in Japan were frustrated with less information delivered. “Prime Minister has a responsibility for explaining what did he talk on TPP, which is discussed in the Diet now,” told Chairman of Diet Affairs Committee of Democratic Party. Communist Party also wondered what was talked on U.S.-Japan security, TPP or Paris Agreement on climate change. Achievement in the meeting is still unclear.