US President Donald Trump met Japanese Prime Minister Takaichi Sanae just before receiving Xi Jinping in Washington, underscoring the importance of the US-Japan alliance at a moment of growing uncertainty over China and regional security. The two leaders discussed defense cooperation and economic security as Tokyo seeks to deepen ties with Washington on AI, semiconductors and critical minerals while also watching closely for any US-China deals that could affect Japan’s interests. At the same time, Japan is expanding security partnerships beyond its alliance with the United States, including with Australia, the Philippines and South Korea, as North Korea advances its missile capabilities and tensions persist across the Taiwan Strait. In this episode, we examine what the Trump-Takaichi meeting signals ahead of the Trump-Xi summit, how Japan is positioning itself between Washington and Beijing and what a more active Japanese security role could mean for Taiwan and the wider Indo-Pacific.
*Recorded on September 24, 2026 at 2pm Taiwan Standard Time
Host: Wen-Ti Sung
Producer: Chinyeh Chiang
Videographer: Celest Kao
Our guests:
Tsai Jung-hsiang
- National Chung Cheng University Political Science Professor
Yu-hua Chen
- Akita International University Associate Professor
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