Visiting US Secretary of State Antony Blinken was in damage control mode on Jan 7 as he reaffirmed the importance of economic ties with Japan during talks with Japanese leaders.
Mr. Blinken also stressed the significance of investments by Japanese companies in the US.
This would normally be considered common sense - Japan has been the largest source of US foreign direct investment since 2019. Yet, the need to reassert the point - at a working lunch with Japanese Foreign Minister Takeshi Iwaya, according to a readout - signals the damage wrought by US President Joe Biden's decision to halt a US$14.9 billion (S$20.3 billion) bid by Japan's Nippon Steel to acquire US Steel on "national security" grounds.
That cast a pall on Mr. Blinken's farewell tour to Tokyo, coming ahead of the Jan 20 inauguration of Donald Trump as US president.
Mr. Blinken did not take questions from the waiting media pack at the Prime Minister's Office in Tokyo after a closed-door meeting with Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba.
Instead, he chose to focus on the positives in brief remarks, expounding on the relationship as "an alliance, a partnership, a friendship that's grown stronger than it's ever been before," with their economies "extraordinarily intertwined."
But Mr. Iwaya told reporters at an evening news conference: "At this juncture, I felt I had no choice but to raise the issue of the US Steel acquisition."
This story is from the January 08, 2025 edition of The Straits Times.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber ? Sign In
This story is from the January 08, 2025 edition of The Straits Times.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Sign In
Victoria!
Ein Hofwagen und seine bewegte Geschichte A Court Carriage and its Colourful History
Disney's LinaBell Wins Hearts in China
Each week, whenever she has time off from her marketing job, Ms Ida Jia can be found at Shanghai Disneyland, queueing for hours to spend a few minutes with LinaBell, a fluffy pink fox character with big blue eyes.
Missing actor found near Myanmar border
A Chinese actor who went missing near Thailand's border with Myanmar has been found, the Thai authorities said, as they sought to contain the fallout of the incident on the nation's vital tourism industry.
TV Networks Drop Smap's Masahiro Nakai Over Sex-Crime Allegations
Major TV networks have distanced themselves from one of Japan's biggest 1990s boy band stars, after media reports said he paid a woman a large settlement related to alleged sexual misconduct.
Girls' Generation's Taeyeon to perform in Singapore
South Korean singer Taeyeon, a member of K-pop girl group Girls' Generation, has a new concert tour for 2025, which will make a stop in Singapore.
American Millionaire's Blueprint for Longevity
Bryan Johnson, subject of the documentary Don't Die: The Man Who Wants To Live Forever, says Singaporean Chuando Tan's agelessness shows what biology is capable of
The Substance director not surprised by Demi Moore's late-career comeback
Demi Moore's Golden Globe Best Actress in a Motion Picture - Musical or Comedy win for The Substance has, almost overnight, transformed the 1990s megastar into a seemingly unlikely favourite for the Oscars.
Better Man and Count Of Monte Cristo are electrifying tales
Britpop superstar Robbie Williams is a walking, talking, singing chimpanzee in an autobiography of his childhood through his three decades in the music industry, breaking away from the 1990s boy band Take That for solo success.
TV adaptation honours Gabriel Garcia Marquez's magic
This first eight-episode season landed on Netflix in mid-December, with a puzzling lack of marketing.
In Stranger Eyes, the voyeur becomes the viewed
Film-maker Yeo Siew Hua asks heavy questions with a light touch in the crime story