Earlier this year, Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba traveled to Washington with a bold offer.
He was aware about President Donald Trump’s frustration over the imbalance in US-Japan trade relations and offered to boost Japan’s cumulative investment in the United States to $1 trillion.
It was more than a symbolic move as Japan is already the biggest foreign investor in the US, and Ishiba’s promise was a clear signal that Tokyo was willing to play along with Trump’s ‘America First’ agenda, while still looking out for its own economic priorities.
Cut to July 7 and Japan is among the first list of countries to face higher tariffs on imports to the United States. To put it simply, Ishiba’s play didn’t work and ended in a 25% tariff hike.
What went wrong?
Initially it all seemed to be going well, as President Donald Trump publicly hinted that a trade deal with Japan would be “easy to reach,” and both leaders issued statements emphasising mutual security and economic cooperation.
But, it all came down to the most sensitive topic for both nations: rice.
As Japan’s July 20 election drew closer, Tokyo was still holding firm on its most sensitive sectors especially agriculture.
Rice, long a cultural cornerstone and political lightning rod, was a nonstarter in any tariff talks.
Japanese negotiators instead dangled promises of increased investment and modest boosts in US agricultural imports, wagering that this would be enough to keep Trump satisfied and avoid fresh tariffs on Japanese cars and other key exports.
But the bet backfired. On Monday, Trump abruptly announced a blanket 25% tariff on all Japanese imports, set to take effect August 1.
The news delivered through a mix of formal letters and bombastic social media posts caught Japanese officials off guard.
They had believed negotiations were on the right track.
Trump singled out Japan’s “refusal” to buy American rice as a major sticking point, despite the irony: thanks to climate shocks and a shrinking population, Japan is actually facing a rice shortage and has quietly ramped up US rice imports in recent months.
Diplomatic deadlock
The sudden tariffs caught Japanese negotiators off guard, leaving them with little room to maneuver and even less time.
With elections just around the corner, Ishiba is feeling the heat from both Washington and voters at home.
Some officials in Tokyo argue Japan may have no choice but to further open its market to US farm goods, even rice, if it wants to protect its vital auto exports.
Others push back, saying the US should ease its own tariffs on Japanese cars before expecting new concessions on agriculture.
The most recent meeting between Trump and Ishiba at the G7 didn’t help matters.
Trump seemed distracted, and both sides admitted to “misunderstandings” in how they approached the talks.
The lack of any clear progress has only added to public frustration in Japan, where many are starting to wonder if months of negotiations have delivered anything meaningful other than more wins for Washington.
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