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Japan and the US are key defence allies and each other's leading foreign investors

Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba on Thursday left for the United States ahead of what will be President Donald Trump's 2nd summit with a foreign leader considering that his go back to the White House.

Japan is one of the closest allies of the United States in Asia with around 54,000 US military personnel stationed in the country.

Ishiba will be pressing for reassurance on the value of the US-Japan alliance, as Trump's "America First" agenda threats encroaching on the nations' trade and defence ties.

"It would be wonderful if we could verify that we will interact for the advancement this region and the world and for peace," Ishiba told reporters in Tokyo before leaving for the .

Japan's Nikkei newspaper said Thursday the pair will provide a joint statement, asteroidsathome.net which might vow to construct a "golden era" of bilateral relations and bring the alliance to "brand-new heights".

Ishiba is anticipated to inform Trump that Japan will increase defence purchases from the United States, the Nikkei said.

Ishiba may also propose importing more US natural gas-- chiming with Trump's plan to "drill, infant, drill" while improving energy security for resource-poor Japan.

Since Japan has cut its melted gas (LNG) imports from Russia, it "desperately needs to open up new sources of LNG, and other energy more broadly", Sheila Smith, senior fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations, informed AFP.

"The objective is to present a win-win value proposition from Ishiba to the president," she said.

Trump will satisfy Ishiba in Washington on Friday-- simply days after a joint interview with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, where the US president triggered uproar with a proposition to take over the Gaza Strip.

The Japan summit might be less surprising, Smith said, as Trump "has a fairly strong commitment to the alliances in Asia".

- Taiwan risk -

Ishiba has actually stressed the significance of US defence ties, pointing to hazards on Japan's doorstep such as China pressing its claims of sovereignty on the self-ruled island of Taiwan.

Tokyo needs to "continue to secure the US commitment to the area, to prevent a power vacuum leading to local instability", Ishiba just recently informed parliament.

Trump and Ishiba are anticipated to verify the significance of peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait, Japanese media said.

That would echo joint statements made by the last US president Joe Biden with previous Japanese prime ministers.

Concentrating on this point is "exceptionally important" since Japan and the United States must work together to prevent a possible crisis, said Takashi Shiraishi, an international relations specialist at the Prefectural University of Kumamoto.

As Japan and the United States renegotiate how to share the burden of defence costs, nevertheless, there are issues Trump could provide less money and push Japan to do more, Smith said.

"That's where ... the Ishiba-Trump relationship might get a bit sticky," she said.

- After Abe -

Also causing jitters is Trump's determination to slap trade tariffs on major trading partners China, Canada, and Mexico-- though he has actually delayed procedures against the latter two countries pending talks.

"I hope Ishiba will reveal him there are other ways to attain economic security," such as cooperating on innovation, Shiraishi told AFP.

One example is the Stargate drive, revealed after Trump's January inauguration, to invest up to $500 billion in AI facilities in the United States, led by Japanese tech investment leviathan SoftBank Group and US firm OpenAI.

Reports said the leaders might likewise go over Nippon Steel's $14.9 billion quote to purchase US Steel, which Biden obstructed on national security grounds.

Japan and the United States are each other's top foreign investors, and the Nikkei reported that the leaders will settle on creating an investment-friendly environment.

During his first term, Trump and Japan's then-prime minister Shinzo Abe took pleasure in warm relations.

As president-elect in December, Trump also hosted Akie Abe, the widow of Japan's assassinated ex-premier, for a supper with Melania Trump at their Florida home.

Trump constructed a strong relationship with Abe, for whom Smith believes he had a "genuine fondness".

He will likely "see Ishiba through a different lens", said Smith, and "it will be more the state-to-state relationship, not the personal".

Ishiba, 68, will not be the first Japanese VIP to meet the 78-year-old Trump face to face since he took workplace-- a difference held by SoftBank creator Masayoshi Son.