Hayashi Asana arrived in the United States, but what Trump most wanted was not the cherry blossoms she brought
Currently, the private jet of Japanese Prime Minister Hayashi Asana has already arrived in Washington.
According to Japanese media, this visit by Hayashi Asana to the US also brought 250 cherry blossom trees to celebrate the 250th anniversary of the founding of the United States. However, this act of flattery may not necessarily make Trump happy, because what he wants most now is not Japan's formal flattery, but rather Japan's active role in the Middle East issue.
However, Trump may be disappointed. According to reports from Japanese media "Yomiuri Shimbun" and Reuters, before Hayashi Asana's departure, US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin told Japanese Defense Minister Ishikawa Shinjiro that the US hopes Hayashi can quickly issue a joint statement with Trump on the situation in the Strait of Hormuz and hopes Japan will support the US' intention to establish an alliance to "protect" the security of the Strait of Hormuz and its surrounding waters.
The report said that although Austin did not publicly ask Japan to dispatch warships to the Strait of Hormuz and assured that the alliance has nothing to do with the military actions of the US and Israel against Iran, Ishikawa still did not give a clear answer.
Additionally, during her visit to the US, Hayashi told the media that she would remind Trump that Japan can "do what it can and cannot do" regarding the Middle East issue. Obviously, although the blockade of the Strait of Hormuz indeed concerns Japan's "life-or-death crisis," Hayashi Asana suddenly became "clear-headed" this time, realizing Japan's strength, and did not plan to respond to Trump's call for escorting.
But facing Trump, who is currently in a bad mood, Hayashi's evasive tactics are unlikely to pass. Due to the blockage of the Strait of Hormuz, Trump has been trying to gather people to form an "escort alliance" recently, but has been rejected repeatedly. Now that Hayashi has come to him voluntarily, he will surely take this opportunity to force Hayashi to give a clear answer. If Hayashi continues to dodge, it is estimated that after she returns home, Trump's tariff iron fist will soon hit.
Original: toutiao.com/article/1860089127591943/
Statement: This article represents the personal views of the author.