Press Conference by Prime Minister ISHIBA Shigeru Regarding His Participation in the Upcoming G7 Kananaskis Summit and Other Matters

(On what messages Japan will send out at the G7 Summit to be held in Canada, and what kinds of outcomes Prime Minister Ishiba hopes to achieve; also, with regard to the current state of coordinating a Japan-U.S. bilateral summit meeting with U.S. President Trump, if a meeting with President Trump is held, on the kind of statements Prime Minister Ishiba will make with a view to having the series of U.S. tariff measures reviewed, and on whether or not Prime Minister Ishiba anticipates achieving a certain degree of agreement with President Trump)

Right now, the international community faces a wide array of challenges. In particular, we can cite the situation between Israel and Iran, and the Ukraine situation also remains precarious. Even as various issues are becoming increasingly severe -- the international situation, the global economy, security, emerging technologies -- I intend to speak with Mr. Trump candidly about a number of issues like these.

It has been 50 years since the G7 was formed. The most critical thing is for the G7 to act in alignment. I consider it most important for us as the G7 to address various issues in a united manner, without discord among the member countries.

From my position, a key issue is how we will maintain peace in the Indo-Pacific. In that regard, Japan advocates for a Free and Open Indo-Pacific. Japan is the only G7 member participating from Asia, and Japan looks at issues from that viewpoint. Whether we are discussing Ukraine or the Middle East or Asia, unity among the G7 must come first and foremost. I intend to send out a message on what we should do in concrete terms going forward, speaking as the G7 member from Asia, and also speaking as Japan.

As for a meeting with President Trump in Kananaskis, we are now coordinating the matter. I will make every possible effort to realize an agreement that benefits both Japan and the United States. I have summit meetings already scheduled with Prime Minister Carney of Canada and Chancellor Merz of Germany, and among the outreach countries I will be meeting with President Zelenskyy of Ukraine and Prime Minister Albanese of Australia. Bilateral meetings with the leaders of various countries have a different kind of significance, and I intend to have in-depth exchanges of views with my counterparts.

(Regarding Nippon Steel's planned acquisition of U.S. Steel, Nippon Steel has announced that U.S. President Trump has approved the partnership between the two companies and that permission has been granted for the planned acquisition; on how Prime Minister Ishiba regards this development, in the context of the Government of Japan having supported the negotiations thus far; also, this afternoon, senior officials from the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI) and the Agency for Natural Resources and Energy visited the Prime Minister's official residence; on what kind of briefing they gave and on whether or not it was related to energy)

I want to express my sincere respect to President Trump for his leadership and decisiveness in approving this investment plan, as well as to Treasury Secretary Bessent, Commerce Secretary Lutnick, and so many others for their tireless efforts in coordinating matters, enabling us to reach this point. Of course, on the Japanese side as well, we had the Government acting as one in taking up this issue, with government and the private sector both fully engaged. I regard this outcome as something made possible through the efforts of a great many individuals. In addition to expressing this wholehearted respect for all those involved, I would like to underscore my intention to make further efforts going forward to ensure that this arrangement bears fruit. This investment will also result in job creation in the United States.

And, I believe this arrangement will make it possible to considerably expand the production capacity of high-quality steel through innovations harnessing Nippon Steel's technological prowess. As we aim to bolster the resilience of our supply chains for commodities in partnership with the United States, a like-minded country, I will work all the more to ensure that this agreement is truly effective. I regard this approval as a kind of symbolic case, in the sense that it also led to improvements in the global investment environment. Insofar as this investment reinforces our mutual Japan-U.S. economic relations while also reinforcing the Japan-U.S. partnership overall, I consider this agreement to be symbolic in a sense.

Today, I was briefed by METI on the energy situation and its future outlook, grounded in the current state of affairs between Iran and Israel. What is most important is considering the perspective of ordinary citizens in their daily lives, even as we keep a keen eye on international developments. I instructed METI to take all possible preparations to ensure a stable supply of energy for Japan. We will continue to maintain a high degree of vigilance as we respond to the situation in an all-encompassing manner that has no omissions or oversights.

(On whether or not there have been any changes in Japan's stance of calling strongly for the removal of U.S. tariffs)

We continue to maintain our stance on this matter.