Trump Endorses Japan PM Takaichi, Hails Election "Big Victory"

US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said on a Fox News that Trump has a "great relationship" with Takaichi and "when Japan is strong, the U.S. is strong in Asia."

Bessent welcomed her ruling coalition winning a two-thirds majority in Japan's more powerful House of Representatives, calling it a "big victory."

Describing the victory as an "impressive win," U.S. Ambassador to Japan George Glass in a post on X that the administration looks forward to building on Trump's "reinvigoration of the US-Japan partnership by continuing to deepen cooperation between our two dynamic nations."

"Congratulations to Prime Minister @takaichi_sanae on an impressive win in the House of Representatives election. I look forward to building on @POTUS @realDonaldTrump's reinvigoration of the U.S.-Japan partnership by continuing to deepen cooperation between our two dynamic nations."

US President Donald Trump on Sunday endorsed Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi as Japan went to the polls for a crucial legislative election.

Trump said he was looking forward to welcoming Takaichi to the White House on March 19, recalling his recent visit to Japan, during which he and his delegation were "extremely impressed" with her leadership.

Highlighting bilateral cooperation, Trump pointed to close coordination between Washington and Tokyo on national security and trade. He said the United States and Japan have worked together on "a very substantial Trade Deal, one that strongly benefits both Countries."

In a direct endorsement of a foreign leader during an election, Trump declared, "As President of the United States of America, it is my Honor to give a Complete and Total Endorsement of her, and what her highly respected Coalition is representing."

He concluded the message with a strong vote of confidence in the Japanese leader, writing in capital letters, "SHE WILL NOT LET THE PEOPLE OF JAPAN DOWN!" and wished voters luck ahead of what he called their "very important Sunday Vote."

Japan's Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi's upcoming visit to Washington, her first since taking office, will precede US President Donald Trump's planned April trip to China, as Beijing has taken an increasingly hard-line stance over her comments on a potential crisis in the Taiwan Strait, Kyodo News reported.

Trump has repeatedly praised Japan's commitment to making large-scale investments in the United States, a key element of a trade deal reached last summer following his tariff threats against Tokyo, Kyodo News said.

Since her early days in office, Trump has publicly lauded Takaichi, leader of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party, describing her as a protegee of former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, with whom he forged a close personal relationship during his first term.

On Sunday, the US State Department said the administration looks forward to advancing " U.S. security and economic priorities, as well as our shared interests, in the Indo-Pacific and globally" with Japan, Kyodo News reported.

A State Department spokesperson described the US-Japan alliance as "the cornerstone of peace, security and prosperity" in the region, adding that it "has never been stronger," according to Kyodo News.

- ANI