- The trade deal is in line with Japan’s interests
- Had no discussion with US officials about how to implement the deal yet
- No comment (when asked about a quarterly review on the deal, as suggested by Bessent)
He’s saying a lot by saying very little to be honest. The one positive thing is that the agreement looks to be done via an executive level decision. As such, it is one that is enforceable and should not need parliamentary approval. But amid the concessions on agriculture and what not, I can’t imagine policymakers back home will be too happy and back off from pressuring Ishiba further. In any case, we’ll see. The details of this deal is still quite up in the air with Akazawa himself also just saying that they’re “not thinking about signing a legally binding agreement” yet.
This article was written by Justin Low at investinglive.com.
