INTERVIEW: Ex-Negotiator Expects Some Tariff Deal by June

   Tokyo, April 19 (Jiji Press)--Japan-U.S. tariff negotiations may reach some form of agreement by June, when a Group of Seven summit will take place in Canada, former Japanese trade negotiator Kazuhisa Shibuya said in a recent interview.
   Negotiators "may be wanting to have Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba and U.S. President Donald Trump make some kind of confirmation around the G-7 summit in June, albeit not a final agreement," Shibuya, professor at Kwansei Gakuin University, said Friday.
   Shibuya was a policy coordination officer for Japan during talks for the Trans-Pacific Partnership multilateral trade pact. He was also involved in trade negotiations with the United States during Trump's first administration that lasted until 2021.
   While trade negotiations should be evaluated based on a final deal, the first round of Japan-U.S. trade talks held Wednesday seems to have allowed Tokyo to get a sense of Washington's pace and stance on tariff talks, Shibuya said.
   "We've learned that Trump, who went as far as to participate in person, is rushing for results," he said. "It's important for Japan to take the lead in negotiations."

(2025/04/19-18:57)