US-Japan: Trump, Japan's PM Abe to discuss concerns over trade and security - Reuters

President Donald Trump and Prime Minister Shinzo Abe were on the wires, via Reuters, as they open two days of talks on Friday looking to cement a decades-old alliance between Japan and the United States.

Key Highlights:

•Abe set a hopeful tone, telling a U.S. Chamber of Commerce breakfast that he wanted to build a relationship of trust with the new U.S. leader.

•An air of uncertainty was hanging over their summit after a presidential campaign in which Trump slammed the U.S. treaty obligation to defend Japan and accused the Japanese of stealing American jobs.

•The U.S. side took steps to get the two leaders off to a positive start by saying Trump would oppose any unilateral declarations that would undermine Japan's administration of disputed islands in the East China Sea.

•Japan has had lingering concerns about what Trump's self-styled "America First" strategy means for U.S. foreign policy in Asia as well as what his decision to withdraw from the Trans-Pacific Partnership trade pact means for bilateral economic ties.