Trump Visits Tokyo as Takaichi Pledges 2% Defence

Japan’s newly elected prime minister Sanae Takaichi pledged to raise defence spending to 2% of GDP by March 2026 as part of a “proactive” fiscal expansion and ordered reviews of national security and defence plans amid concerns about China, North Korea and Russia. U.S. President Donald Trump arrived in Tokyo on Oct. 27 to meet Takaichi in her first major international engagement as leader, with both sides seeking to shore up the U.S.–Japan alliance and discuss maritime security, AI, cybersecurity and trade. The leaders planned symbolic alliance displays including visits to Yokosuka and the USS George Washington and discussed follow-through on a previously agreed multibillion-dollar U.S. investment package and potential U.S. tariff issues. Markets reacted to Takaichi’s spending plans, with Japanese stocks rising to record highs. Takaichi has signalled closer alignment with the United States and expanded engagement in multilateral frameworks while still facing diplomatic friction with China and concerns from neighbours over her conservative record on wartime history; she also met Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. in Kuala Lumpur and welcomed an agreement in principle on an Acquisition and Cross-Servicing Agreement. Tokyo says it seeks a peace treaty with Russia, though Moscow says Japan’s participation in Western sanctions and the unresolved Kuril/Northern Territories dispute have all but frozen dialogue.