Key Takeaways:
- Takaichi seeks a Takaichi Trump meeting ahead of his Sept. 24 Xi summit.
- Talks at the UN will focus heavily on Taiwan and regional security concerns in East Asia.
- Tokyo hopes Washington maintains consistent diplomatic language regarding Taiwan.
Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi is working to arrange a Takaichi Trump meeting Tuesday in New York before her planned Sept. 24 summit with Chinese President Xi Jinping.
Takaichi seeks talks before trump-xi summit
The Takaichi Trump meeting is expected to take place on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly, according to Japanese media reports. The talks would come as Tokyo seeks to coordinate its position with Washington before Trump meets Xi in Washington.Takaichi is working to arrange the Takaichi Trump meeting during her visit to the United States for the General Assembly.
Japan’s government has not confirmed that a meeting has been finalized.
The planned talks would focus in part on China and regional security, particularly Taiwan. Japan has been seeking contact with Trump as Tokyo watches how the U.S. president approaches his upcoming meeting with Xi.
Japan’s Foreign Ministry said Tokyo would “closely follow with great interest” the Trump-Xi summit and stressed the importance of U.S.-China relations contributing to “the stability of the international community.”
Taiwan remains a key concern for Tokyo
Taiwan is a central concern for Japan ahead of the U.S.-China summit. Reuters reported that Tokyo wants Trump to maintain established diplomatic language on Taiwan and avoid allowing the issue to dominate his talks with Xi.
Two Japanese government sources told Reuters that Tokyo is concerned about any possible change in Washington’s position on Taiwan. Japan’s foreign ministry, however, declined to comment on visits by working-level officials and said nothing had been decided about contact between Takaichi and Trump.
Taiwanese officials have also urged Washington to avoid steps that could harm the island. “We hope … there will be no situation that harms Taiwan,” said Shen Yu-chung, a senior Taiwanese official, according to Reuters.
Emma Chanlett-Avery, political-security affairs director at the Asia Society Policy Institute, said U.S. allies were watching Washington’s China policy closely. “There’s a great deal of trepidation, particularly from our allies, about where our China policy is going to land,” she said.
Leaders have built regular contact
A meeting Tuesday would mark at least the fourth in-person encounter between Takaichi and Trump since she became prime minister in October 2025. They first met in Tokyo in October 2025, followed by talks at the White House in March and a brief meeting during the Group of Seven summit in France in June.
The leaders have also held at least four publicly announced phone calls since Takaichi took office. During a May call, Trump briefed Takaichi on his talks with Xi and discussed China, economic security and regional stability with the Japanese leader.
Trump and Xi are scheduled to meet Sept. 24 in Washington. Their discussions are expected to cover trade and other disputes between the world’s two largest economies, with Taiwan also expected to remain a sensitive issue.
