Japan's lead trade negotiator defends tariffs deal with the US

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TOKYO (AP) — Japan’s chief trade negotiator has defended a tariffs deal with the U.S., expressing respect for President Donald Trump and calling him a “tough negotiator.”

Trade envoy Ryosei Akazawa noted that the pact setting on most Japanese exports to the U.S. at 15% was comparable to a deal between Washington and the European Union. Unlike the EU, Japan did not have to lower its tariffs on U.S. goods, he noted.

Japan has also committed to investing $550 billion in U.S. projects.

Trump initially set Japan’s tariff rate to increase by 25%.

Critics in Japan had ridiculed Akazawa's repeated trips to the U.S. to work toward a deal as a waste of taxpayer money, saying he should pitch a tent on the White House lawn.

Akazawa said talks with his counterpart, U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, Trump and others in his administration were tense at first. By the time of his eighth trip, a rapport was established enabling the two sides to set an agreement by July.

“President Trump was a tough negotiator, but I kept insisting, and he would listen graciously. I have all the respect for him,” he told reporters at the Foreign Correspondents’ Club of Japan. “It was a good round of negotiations.”

“It goes without saying that, with any government negotiations, there will always be someone who says Japan lost out, no matter what,” Akazawa said.

The double-digit tariffs Trump has imposed on imports from various nations were a bitter blow to Japan, a key U.S. ally in Asia. Tokyo especially objected to 25% tariffs Trump ordered for imports of steel and aluminum and automobiles.

Japan’s economy depends heavily on exports. Shipments to the United States sank nearly 14% in August compared to a year earlier, the fifth straight month of declines, as auto exports were dented by the tariffs.

U.S. tariffs on Japanese automobiles and auto parts are now set at 15%, way higher than the original 2.5%. Japanese automakers also produce many of the vehicles they sell in the U.S. in North America.

The friction with the U.S. over tariffs was an added burden for Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba's administration. He is due to be replaced as leader of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party later this week.

The Liberal Democrats have ruled Japan almost continuously since the 1950s but they have lost their majority in the lower house, which chooses the prime minister, and will need coalition partners.

Akazawa brushed off concerns the U.S. understanding of the deal may differ from Japan’s. He said whoever becomes a next prime minister, Japan has an established tradition of respecting agreements, especially those forged with a foreign country.

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