Prime Minister of Japan Shigeru Ishiba and United States President Donald Trump had a discussion in May that centered around a “Golden Dome” missile defense system. The discussion was reported by several media outlets in Japan, with the news coming ahead of tariff negotiator Ryosei Akazawa heading to Washington Thursday, with some saying participation in the “Golden Dome” defense system could be a “bargaining chip.”
Neither Ishiba nor Trump has hidden the fact that they intend to spend on their military, and new reports from Japan show that both politicians had talks in May to work together on a “Golden Dome” missile defense system to protect the mainland United States. Trump is looking for Japan’s help. The system would reportedly mimic Israel’s “Iron Dome” missile defense and cost an estimated $831 billion.
Collaboration may be useful for Japan during tariff negotiations
According to other reports citing Nikkei, the participation of Japan in the space-based ballistic missile detection shield could be useful when it comes to weathering Trump-era tariffs. For his part, self-labeled “defense geek” Shigeru Ishiba has already pledged to invest $1 trillion in the United States, even as Japan’s population struggles to buy rice. Ryosei Akazawa, Tokyo’s chief negotiator when it comes to tariffs, will head to Washington D.C. tomorrow for ministerial-level discussions on the issue ahead of the G7 summit later this month.
The close aid to Ishiba and the Minister of State for Economic and Fiscal Policy will return to Japan on Sunday after the talks. However, looking at the actions of these individuals, there is a glaring question: If the idea is to make economies stronger, and bring about more peace in the world via defense, why stifle free trade with insanely high tariffs, like Trump’s recently jacked-up-to-50% gouges on aluminum and steel imports, which will also raise prices and crush American consumers? Why seek to mimic the “Iron Dome” of a government perpetrating an aggressive genocide, where the terror group blamed for starting the conflict was actually “spawned” by the Israeli state itself?
It is further interesting to critical observers that Ishiba is pouring funds into building an “active cyber defense system” in Japan, while the nation struggles with food shortages, inflation, and destructive inbound tourism. Perhaps there is more to the story than the mainstream media tells us. For his part, Trump wants to complete the Golden Dome defense system — headed by U.S. Space Force General Michael Guetlein — by the end of his term in 2029.
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