Japan's prime minister Shinzo Abe described Donald Trump as a "trustworthy leader" after meeting the US president-elect on Thursday to get clarity on statements Mr Trump had made while campaigning that had caused concern about the alliance.
Mr Abe, speaking after the hastily arranged 90-minute meeting at Trump Tower in Manhattan, told reporters: "The talks made me feel sure that we can build a relationship of trust." But he would not disclose specifics because the conversation was unofficial.
Japan’s leadership has been nervous about the future of an alliance that is core to Tokyo’s diplomacy and security.
Mr Trump had fanned worries in Tokyo and beyond with comments on the possibility of Japan acquiring nuclear arms, demands that allies pay more for keeping US forces on their soil or face their possible withdrawal, and his opposition to the US-led 12-nation Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) free trade pact.
Mr Abe had worked closely with president Barack Obama on the TPP trade pact, which was part of Mr Obama's push to counter the rising strength of China and a pillar of Mr Abe's economic reforms.
“Alliances cannot function without trust. I am now confident that president-elect Trump is a trustworthy leader,” said Mr Abe, describing the talks as “candid” and held in a “warm atmosphere”.
Mr Abe gave Mr Trump a golf driver and received golf-wear in return, Japanese officials said.
Photographs taken inside the ornate meeting room at Trump Tower showed Mr Abe accompanied only by an interpreter and Mr Trump by his daughter Ivanka, her husband and Trump adviser Jared Kushner, and Retired Lieutenant General Michael Flynn whom a senior Trump official said on Thursday had been offered the national security adviser position.
Mr Abe said he had agreed to meet again with Trump “at a convenient time to cover a wider area in greater depth.”
It was unclear if that would happen before Mr Trump’s inauguration on January 20th. Trump official Kellyanne Conway told CBS earlier on Thursday that “any deeper conversations about policy and the relationship between Japan and the United States will have to wait until after the inauguration.”
Mr Trump officials did not immediately comment following the meeting with Diplomats and analysts say that however good the atmospherics, it will be hard to assess Mr Trump’s policies on security issues ranging from overseas deployments of US troops, China’s maritime assertiveness and the North Korean nuclear threat until Trump makes key appointments.
Reuters