Is the shine coming off the US-Japan 'golden age'?

Trade talks have stalled amid disagreements over defence and security issues.

- Gearoid Reidy

"A friendship like few others" is how US President Donald Trump described the US-Japan relationship in January, declaring his confidence that "the cherished alliances between our two countries will continue to flourish long into the future!"

Not even half a year later, is the shine already coming off what was heralded as a new "golden age" of ties between the two nations?

Trade talks between the two countries, initially expected to yield a quick agreement, have become a slog, with a July 9 deadline for higher so-called reciprocal tariffs fast approaching. Japan has scrapped a top-level defence meeting it would normally be desperate to attend amid reports of US demands for more defence spending. And distance has opened between Mr Trump and his counterpart, Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba, on the situation in the Middle East.

The biggest obstacle is, of course, the tariffs. The unilateral imposition of duties was something Japan had hoped its unique relationship with the US would help it avoid. When that failed, the consensus view was that Tokyo would secure an agreement rather quickly. Instead, Japan's chief negotiator Ryosei Akazawa has been traipsing back and forth to the US, most recently last week, with the two sides still seemingly far apart—not helped by lack of agreement on the US side over what it even wants.

Surprisingly, Japan has dug its heels in, insisting on a full climbdown on auto tariffs and cautioning that it won't take a bad deal just to reach a quick one.