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Donald Trump welcomes Japan's offer of mediation with Iran Donald Trump welcomes Japan's offer of mediation with Iran
(about 3 hours later)
Donald Trump has said he would support Shinzo Abe’s efforts to act as a mediator between the US and Iran, amid reports that the Japanese prime minister will visit Tehran next month for talks with president Hassan Rouhani. Donald Trump has said he would support Shinzo Abe’s efforts to act as a mediator between the US and Iran, as reports suggested the Japanese prime minister would visit Tehran next month for talks with the Iranian president, Hassan Rouhani.
Tehran says it has no interest in talking to the US administration, which has imposed tough sanctions on the country over its nuclear programme, and last week sent 1,500 troops to the region. Speaking at a press conference on the penultimate day of his state visit to Japan, Trump also gave his backing to Abe’s attempts to set up a first summit, without preconditions, with the North Korean leader, Kim Jong-un, hours after the regime described the US president’s national security adviser, John Bolton, as a warmonger.
“I know that the prime minister and Japan have a very good relationship with Iran so we’ll see what happens,” Trump, who has offered Tehran direct talks, told reporters in Tokyo on the penultimate day of his state visit to Japan. Tehran says it has no interest in talking to the US administration, which has imposed tough sanctions on the country over its nuclear programme and last week sent 1,500 troops to the region.
“The prime minister has already spoken to me about that and I do believe that Iran would like to talk. And if they’d like to talk, we’d like to talk also. We’ll see what happens ... nobody wants to see terrible things happen, especially me.” “I know that the prime minister and Japan have a very good relationship with Iran so we’ll see what happens,” Trump, who has offered Tehran direct talks, told reporters before a working lunch with Abe.
On Monday, Trump became the first leader to meet Japan’s new emperor, Naruhito. The US president said it was a “great honour”. Trump, who became the first world leader to meet Japan’s new emperor, Naruhito, on Monday, added: “The prime minister has already spoken to me about that and I do believe that Iran would like to talk. And if they would like to talk, we would like to talk also. We’ll see what happens … nobody wants to see terrible things happen, especially me.”
Trump later said Washington was not interested in regime change in Iran. “I’m looking to Iran to say no nuclear weapons,” he said. “I think we’ll make a deal. Iran has tremendous economic potential … We’re not looking for regime change, we’re looking for no nuclear weapons. I’m not looking to hurt Iran at all.”
Abe said Japan “would like to do whatever it can. Japan and the US should collaborate closely so that tensions surrounding Iran are lessened and do not result in armed conflict”.
Trump’s conciliatory tone extended to North Korea, despite the deadlock in denuclearisation talks and Pyongyang’s recent testing of short-range missiles.Trump’s conciliatory tone extended to North Korea, despite the deadlock in denuclearisation talks and Pyongyang’s recent testing of short-range missiles.
Trump said his relationship with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un was one of “great respect”, and talked up the prospects for progress on dismantling the regime’s nuclear weapons programme. Standing next to Abe at the state guest house in Tokyo, he said he believed Kim was “looking to create a nation that has great strength economically … He’s looking to develop that and he knows that with nuclear weapons that’s not going to happen.”
“I personally think that lots of good things will come with North Korea, I feel that. I may be right, I may be wrong, but I feel that,” Trump said. “There’s a good respect built, maybe a great respect built between... the United States and North Korea, but we will see what happens.” Noting that Pyongyang had not tested nuclear weapons or long-range missiles since late 2017, Trump added: “I’m very happy with the way it’s going.”
North Korea responded by calling Trump’s national security adviser, John Bolton, a “warmonger” and “defective human product” after he said at the weekend that there was “no doubt” that Pyongyang’s short-range missile tests early this month violated UN security council resolutions. He said earlier on Monday that his relationship with the North Korean leader was one of great respect, and talked up the prospect of progress in dismantling the regime’s nuclear weapons programme.
An unnamed North Korean foreign ministry spokesman said North Korea was exercising its right to self-defence with the launches, the first since late 2017. North Korea responded by calling Bolton a warmonger and “defective human product” after he said at the weekend that there was no doubt that Pyongyang’s short-range missile tests early this month had violated UN security council resolutions.
“Bolton should not be called a security adviser who works to secure security, but an adviser for security destruction who destroys peace and security,” the spokesman said, according to the North’s official KCNA news agency. Abe agreed with Bolton’s assessment, but Trump told reporters he was “not personally bothered” by the launches.
“It’s not that strange that crooked sound will always come out the mouth of a man who is structurally flawed, and it’s best that this defective human product goes away as soon as possible.” North Korea’s official KCNA news agency quoted an unnamed North Korean spokesman as saying: “Bolton should not be called a security adviser who works to secure security, but an adviser for security destruction who destroys peace and security. It’s best that this defective human product goes away as soon as possible.”
On Monday, Trump, who had spent the previous day with Abe playing golf, watching sumo and dining out at a Japanese charcoal-grill restaurant, became the first world leader to meet Japan’s new emperor, Naruhito, and his wife, empress Masako. Abe recently shifted his stance on engagement with North Korea, saying he would be willing to meet Kim without preconditions, having previously refused to talk unless significant progress was made on resolving the cold war abductions of Japanese citizens by North Korean agents.
The couple welcomed Trump and the first lady, Melania, to the imperial palace, where the president made a solo inspection of a self-defence force guard of honour and met Japanese and US officials and politicians. “I feel I have to meet face-to-face with Chairman Kim without attaching any preconditions and exchange frank views with him,” Abe said. “President Trump … said he would give his full support to that.”
Trump said it was a “great honour” to be the first leader to meet Naruhito, who became emperor weeks ago after his father, Akihito, became the first Japanese monarch to abdicate for 200 years. On Monday, Trump met the families of some of the people who were taken to North Korea in the 1970s and 80s to teach their language and customs to the regime’s spies. The president, who has raised the issue in his two summits with Kim, said he would continue to work to resolve the abductions and end the “unspeakable heartbreak” suffered by their families.
The couples later chatted inside – reportedly without the help of interpreters, as Naruhito and Masako are both fluent in English. Melania Trump gave Masako a desk set that included a fountain pen made from a red oak tree that stands in the grounds of Harvard University, where the empress studied economics. Emperor Naruhito and his wife, Empress Masako, had earlier welcomed Trump and the first lady, Melania, to the imperial palace, where the president made a solo inspection of a self-defence force guard of honour and greeted Japanese and US officials and politicians.
With the pageantry over, Trump and Abe held talks in the afternoon that focused on Iran, North Korea and the potentially tricky issue of trade. Trump said it was a great honour to be the first leader to meet Naruhito, who became emperor weeks ago after his father, Akihito, became the first Japanese monarch to abdicate for 200 years.
Trump said US-Japan relations had “never been better,” but with the allies locked in talks over a bilateral trade deal, he has complained about the “tremendous” trade deficit with Japan several times since he arrived on Saturday. With the pageantry over, Trump and Abe held talks in the afternoon. Trump said US-Japan relations had never been better, but with the allies locked in talks over a bilateral trade deal, he has complained about the “tremendous” trade deficit with Japan several times since he arrived on Saturday.
“I think we will be announcing some things probably in August that will be very good for both countries,” Trump said, adding that Japan has “been doing much more business with us and we’d like to do a little bit more business in the reverse.” “I think we will be announcing some things probably in August that will be very good for both countries,” Trump said. Japan had “been doing much more business with us and we would like to do a little bit more business in the reverse.”
“We’re working on that, and I’m sure that will work out over a period of time,” Trump added. “We’ll get the balance of trade straightened out rapidly.”
Japan is desperate to see off Trump’s threats to impose high tariffs on its cars and auto parts as part of an effort to reduce trade surpluses with other countries.Japan is desperate to see off Trump’s threats to impose high tariffs on its cars and auto parts as part of an effort to reduce trade surpluses with other countries.
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Donald TrumpDonald Trump
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