US-JAPAN: Energy & Defence To Dominate Trump/Ishiba Talks-Admin Official

Ahead of the White House bilateral between US President Donald Trump and Japanese PM Shigeru Ishiba at 1130ET/1630GMT, Reuters reports comments from a senior administration official regarding the talks and state of play in Asia. Says that Trump and Ishiba will discuss joint military training exercises between the two countries, as well as "investments in defence equipment and tech". The official says they "expect energy to play a large role in discussions." 

• On security in the Indo-Pacific, the official says the administration "continues to support trilateral efforts involving the US, Japan, and South Korea", and that the US is "committed to the complete de-nuclearisation of North Korea." A presser will follow the meeting at ~1310ET (1810GMT).
• For a more detailed analysis of today's meeting, please see MNI's US Daily Brief.
• Earlier, Japan's Kyodo news reported that officials from the US, Japan and South Korea were looking to arrange the first trilateral meeting between the three countries since Trump took office. A meeting involving Japanese Foreign Minister Takeshi Iwaya, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and South Korean Foreign Minister Cho Tae-yul on the sidelines of the Munich Security Conference from 14 Feb is seen as the opportune moment.
• A leader-level trilateral meeting, however, is unlikely any time soon given the ongoing impeachment trial of South Korea's President Yoon Suk-yeol following his abortive declaration of martial law in Dec 2024.