The New Nixon Shock? Why Japan Fears a Trump-Xi Deal
The China-U.S. summit held from September 23 to 25 raised concerns in Japan over how it appeared rather than its substance, with Japanese media focusing on Donald Trump's and Xi Jinping's references to their countries as former allies that fought against imperial Japan. Within the Japanese government, confusion was reportedly expressed internally, and Prime Minister Takaichi Sanae met Trump before his meeting with Xi, after which she said Trump had given her a detailed explanation of the summit and described two leader meetings within a single week as a demonstration of the strength of the Japan-U.S. alliance.
Why it matters: The episode shows how the perception of US-China dealmaking shapes alliance management and Japan's concern with abandonment rather than entrapment in the Indo-Pacific.