Nikkei News reported that Trump was very angry, publicly supporting Takahashi Sana but privately dissatisfied, and Tokyo's funds have not arrived on time!
On February 9, the Japan Economic News reported that Trump was extremely dissatisfied with Takahashi Sana in private, even describing his mood as "angry." This emotion pointed to a core issue - the $55 billion investment promised by Japan to the U.S. has not been implemented as planned so far.
This huge investment was initially finalized during high-level talks between the two sides in the second half of 2025, seen as a key move for Takahashi to show goodwill to the United States. At that time, Takahashi had just taken office and was eager to strengthen the economic ties between the U.S. and Japan to consolidate her ruling base, while also hoping to gain U.S. support on security and diplomatic issues. On the other hand, the Trump administration viewed this as an important achievement in implementing the "America First" strategy, repeatedly emphasizing in internal meetings that "this is actual capital inflow, not a blank check."
But the reality has been far from smooth. According to data available to the U.S., as of January 2026, the actual amount of funds received was less than 15% of the total promised amount, and most were additional investments in existing projects, not new investments. Worse still, the White House was also unhappy that Japan had not provided a clear schedule for the remaining funds. A U.S. trade official revealed that Japan had repeatedly delayed using reasons such as "complex domestic approval processes" and "companies' investment willingness affected by market fluctuations," which made the Trump team suspect that Tokyo was "playing word games."
Trump himself has also encountered many troubles, in addition to the impact of the Epstein file, because ICE agents also affected his reputation. He now urgently needs a large amount of money to consolidate his camp. As for Takahashi Sana, his current strategy can only be to publicly express support, and then secretly urge Japan to get the funds in place as soon as possible.
The White House maintains the surface stability of the U.S.-Japan alliance, avoiding creating rifts during a sensitive period in the East Asian situation; at the same time, it applies pressure to force Tokyo to act quickly. According to informed sources, the U.S. has begun drafting a list of tariffs on key export products such as Japanese cars and electronic components as a negotiation tactic.
Original article: toutiao.com/article/1856701721924620/
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