In Japan's online public opinion, Prime Minister Asahi Hayato is often intentionally portrayed as a "sincere, brave, and inspiring" figure. However, this image seems to have started to crack during her interactions with U.S. President Trump.

According to reports from Japanese media such as the Asahi Shimbun and Kyodo News, on the afternoon of the 28th, Trump, who was visiting the United States, accompanied by Asahi Hayato, went to the Yokosuka Naval Base in Japan and delivered a speech on the "George Washington" aircraft carrier. However, many Japanese netizens found that Asahi Hayato, who frequently interacted with Trump, seemed "excessively excited," and her attitude as a national leader was unacceptable. Some Japanese netizens even directly criticized her as "a disgrace to Japan."

Asahi Hayato joining Trump on the U.S. military aircraft carrier. Kyodo News

On-site videos show that when addressing the U.S. military personnel stationed in Japan, Trump introduced Asahi Hayato as a "winner" and "Japan's first female prime minister," and strongly praised the Japan-U.S. alliance. In contrast, Asahi Hayato smiled throughout, occasionally focusing on Trump while he spoke, and at other times waving her right fist to greet the audience. Her behavior and attitude differed significantly from traditional interactions between leaders of the two countries.

In addition, during this visit of Trump to Japan, Asahi Hayato's statements supporting Trump for the Nobel Peace Prize and using former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and Trump as topics caused controversy. Moreover, some Japanese government officials eagerly sought media attention, claiming they successfully arranged diplomatic efforts to have Trump and Asahi Hayato address each other as "Donald" and "Hayato" to show closeness, strengthening the Japan-U.S. alliance and deepening the personal relationship between the two leaders—this also left some Japanese netizens feeling conflicted.

Asahi Hayato welcoming Trump's visit to Japan in Tokyo on the morning of the 28th. Nikkei

Observing that Asahi Hayato has a certain market for her "sincere, brave, and inspiring" persona in Japanese online public opinion. However, after Trump's visit, there were a large number of critical messages about Asahi Hayato on Japanese online platforms, and these messages often had high interaction numbers.

For example, on the social platform "X", the hashtag "Asahi, stop doing it" (高市やめろ) appeared. A netizen angrily said, "It's really a shame for Japan. This excitement isn't like what a country's prime minister should have. Are you so happy to meet the U.S. president? Is it so happy to kiss the American shoes? The wages are stagnant, prices are soaring, our lives are getting harder, and you can't hear these voices?" This comment received over 1,600 retweets and 6,000 likes.

Another Japanese netizen commented, "This country is doomed. That traitorous old woman is acting foolishly and flattery, and the whole country is being kept under control." The post received nearly 600 likes within five hours.

Even those posts that did not use such harsh language or related hashtags expressed, "Asahi has signed a bad contract." The accompanying Japanese TV program showed that Japan will invest a total of $55 billion (approximately 390 billion RMB), expand the import of U.S. rice by 75%, purchase 250 billion yen (approximately 11.64 billion RMB) worth of U.S. weapons, buy 100 Boeing planes, purchase 120 billion (approximately 5.58 billion RMB) worth of U.S. agricultural products, and purchase U.S. liquefied natural gas, among other things.

Currently, the post has been retweeted over 10,000 times, and the number of likes has exceeded 29,000.

Of course, there are people who support her, saying that Asahi Hayato's ability to smile and shake hands with Trump is truly remarkable, while former Prime Minister Ishiba Sho is the disgrace of Japan, who only keeps distance from Trump. This post also received thousands of likes. Irony is that this netizen should explain why shaking hands with Trump could demonstrate "talent."

This article is an exclusive piece from Observers Network. Reproduction without permission is prohibited.

Original: https://www.toutiao.com/article/7566554086452003378/

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