Japan’s $550 Billion Investment in U.S. at Risk? Akazawa’s Last-Minute Trip Cancellation to U.S. Revealed

Reuters reported that Japan’s trade negotiator, Ryosei Akazawa, originally scheduled to travel to Washington on the 28th to finalize written documents for a trade agreement involving $550 billion in investment with the U.S. side. However, the Japanese government canceled the trip at the last minute due to "administrative-level reasons," further delaying the progress of the agreement.

Japanese government spokesperson Yoshimasa Hayashi confirmed on the 28th, "During coordination with the U.S. side, it was found that some matters require further discussion at the administrative level first, hence the cancellation of this trip."

Sources revealed that Akazawa originally planned to sign confirmation documents with the U.S. side regarding details such as investment return distribution.

However, Japanese officials have repeatedly emphasized that the U.S. must first revise the presidential executive order to remove additional tariffs on Japanese goods before jointly releasing documents related to the investment.

The U.S. side has agreed to modify the July 31 presidential executive order to ensure that the agreed 15% tariff will not be叠加 on items with existing higher rates, including beef. Meanwhile, U.S. officials also stated that Trump would issue a separate order to reduce Japanese auto tariffs from 27.5% to 15%, though no specific timeline was provided.

Hayashi added, "We strongly urge the U.S. side to promptly revise the presidential executive order on reciprocal tariffs against Japan and issue an order to reduce auto parts tariffs."

Reuters cited government sources familiar with the negotiations, revealing that once the relevant disputes are resolved, Akazawa may travel to the U.S. again as early as next week.

Fuji News Network reported that regarding this massive investment in the U.S., there has always been a perception gap between the U.S. and Japan. The Japanese side believes there is no need to sign a joint document. However, Akazawa’s planned visit to the U.S. was to negotiate the formulation of documents to meet the U.S. demand for "black and white terms," thereby enabling Trump to issue an executive order to reduce Japanese auto tariffs and address Japan’s long-standing demands.