Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis meets with Japan's Kishida in Tokyo
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TOKYO — Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis met with Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida here on Monday and praised Japan’s efforts to bolster its defense spending, in the first leg of the likely GOP presidential contender’s trip this week to four of the biggest U.S. allies. Are you on Telegram? Subscribe to our channel for the latest updates on Russia’s war in Ukraine. ArrowRight The tour is officially billed as an “international trade mission” with Enterprise Florida, an economic development organization in Florida, to build economic ties between the state and Japan, South Korea, Israel and the United Kingdom. But it is also widely viewed as the governor’s effort to burnish his foreign policy credentials ahead of a potential 2024 presidential bid.
Members of Congress and U.S. governors have been visiting Japan in recent months for official trips, but it is unusual for a governor to land a meeting with the Japanese prime minister. The visit also gives Kishida a chance to build rapport with a potential presidential candidate.
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DeSantis is scheduled to have a working dinner with Japanese Foreign Minister Yoshimasa Hayashi on Monday evening, after meeting with business executives.
The two-term governor of Florida has privately indicated that he intends to run for president. He shot to fame in the Republican Party as he cast himself as a fighter against what he calls the “woke” political left and won his reelection in the fall by nearly 20 percentage points. Polls suggest he would enter the GOP primary contest as a clear second place to former president Donald Trump, who has launched his campaign.
In a 40-minute “courtesy call” meeting with Kishida on Monday, the two leaders discussed the importance of the U.S.-Japan alliance and the economic relationship between the two countries, according to a readout by the Japanese Foreign Ministry.
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Japan is Florida’s second-largest bilateral merchandise trade partner in the Asia-Pacific and its seventh-largest trade partner overall, according to a statement by the governor’s office.
At their meeting, Kishida welcomed DeSantis for his first visit to Japan and said he hoped the governor and his family “will be able to deepen your understanding of Japanese politics, economy and culture, which I hope will further strengthen Japan-U.S. and Japan-Florida relationships,” according to a video of their opening remarks.
Kishida also discussed the role of the U.S.-Japan alliance in securing global peace and security, the Foreign Ministry said.
DeSantis congratulated Japan on its World Baseball Classic victory over the United States and reiterated the importance of the alliance. He praised Japan’s ramp-up of its defense budget, as it grows warier of military threats from China, North Korea’s nuclear ambitions and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
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“We very much applaud your efforts to bolster your defenses. We understand it’s a tough neighborhood out here, with North Korea, the rise of the [Chinese Communist Party], and we really believe that a strong Japan is good for America, and a strong America is good for Japan,” DeSantis told Kishida.
He also told the Japanese prime minister that he plans to meet with airline executives to create direct flight routes between Japan and his state, which is the biggest U.S. market without direct flights to Japan, he said.
First lady Casey DeSantis, Florida Secretary of State Cord Byrd and Florida Commerce Secretary Laura DiBella joined the trip, per the governor’s office statement.
The delegation is scheduled to visit South Korea next, where DeSantis will meet with Gyeonggi province Gov. Kim Dong-yeon and Prime Minister Han Duck-soo. South Korea’s top leader, President Yoon Suk Yeol, will be in Washington, D.C., where he will be the guest of honor at a state dinner at the White House on Wednesday. DeSantis and company are scheduled to go to Israel on Thursday and end their trip with a stop in the United Kingdom.
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The 2024 U.S. presidential contest is of interest in Japan and South Korea, where many officials are bracing for a potential return of Trump-style “America First” foreign policy and demands that U.S. allies pay for keeping American troops stationed abroad and for maintaining the U.S. nuclear umbrella for the two allies.
Despite Trump’s demands, former Japanese prime minister Shinzo Abe forged close ties with him, including through rounds of golf, to protect and advance Japan’s interests.
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Source: The Washington Post
