Written on June 27, 2019.
Drawing on Abiru Rui’s Sankei Shimbun column “Kyokugen Gomen,” this essay examines the credibility of reports claiming that President Trump mentioned scrapping the U.S.-Japan Security Treaty, while sharply criticizing the Asahi Shimbun’s posture of sensationalizing such claims.
At the same time, it shows how Prime Minister Shinzo Abe envisioned Japan’s strategic independence vis-à-vis the United States and its strategy toward China within the framework of the Trump administration, arguing for both the practical significance of the alliance and Japan’s own agency.

2019-06-27
The baseness of the Asahi Shimbun’s mind has already reached a realm that deserves pity.
I can only gnash my teeth at the fact that I subscribed to such a newspaper for so long, until August five years ago.

The following is from an article published in today’s Sankei Shimbun, in Abiru Rui’s column “Kyokugen Gomen.”
All emphasis in the text other than the headline, and all passages marked by ＊～＊, are mine.
Dubious reporting on scrapping the U.S.-Japan Security Treaty.
A Bloomberg report saying that President Trump, in a recent private conversation, referred to scrapping the U.S.-Japan Security Treaty has become a topic of discussion.
The Asahi Shimbun, in its morning edition of the 26th, ran an article under the headline “Trump’s True Feelings Showing Through” and frolicked with lines such as, “The Abe administration, which advertises its honeymoon by saying that ‘U.S.-Japan relations are the strongest ever,’ cannot hide its shock and anxiety,” but no such agitation can be seen in the government.
The baseness of the Asahi Shimbun’s mind has already reached a realm that deserves pity.
I can only gnash my teeth at the fact that I subscribed to such a newspaper for so long, until August five years ago…
What a waste of time it was, and the bitterness of having been kept in a state of ignorance for such a long period is also an anger beyond measure.
So long as such a newspaper is allowed to survive, Japan cannot become a leader of the world.
It is clear that it cannot fulfill its role as a nation where The Turntable of Civilization has turned.
All that can happen is that, through people who act as agents of China and the Korean Peninsula, Japan’s national strength and credibility will continue to be undermined.　
Rather, the writer looks at the content of the original report and the timing of Trump’s conversation with considerable skepticism.
He believes it is unreasonable to develop an argument based on this as a premise.
Both governments deny it.　　
“There is absolutely no such talk as reported.
We have also received confirmation from the United States that it is incompatible with the position of the U.S. government.”　　
Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga said this at his press conference on the 25th.
The U.S. government has also denied the report, but since Trump is a man of whom one never knows what he might say, I can understand why some think that such a story might conceivably be possible.　
Certainly, during the 2016 U.S. presidential election, Trump criticized the one-sided nature of the U.S.-Japan alliance and expressed dissatisfaction with the state of the Security Treaty, such as by calling for a major increase in Japan’s share of the cost of stationing U.S. forces there.
Immediately after the presidential election, Prime Minister Abe, speaking of what he would do if Trump pressed such claims, said this to those around him.　　
“If that happens, we can use it as an opportunity for Japan’s independence vis-à-vis the United States.” This too is one proof that it is no exaggeration to say that Prime Minister Abe was the greatest politician of the postwar era.　
The growing importance of the alliance.
If it had been Trump of that period, it is possible that he might have spoken as the recent report suggests, but after taking office he has continued to make statements showing that he understands the importance of the U.S.-Japan alliance.
Given his close relationship with Prime Minister Abe, when in May he became the first U.S. president to board a Japanese Maritime Self-Defense Force vessel, the Izumo-class destroyer Kaga, he delivered the following remarks.
“At this historic moment when Japan has entered the Reiwa era, we celebrate the U.S.-Japan alliance.”　　
“I thank my friend Prime Minister Abe for his efforts to strengthen Japan’s defense capabilities, which also enhance the security of the United States.”　
What motive could he possibly have for speaking of scrapping the U.S.-Japan Security Treaty before the ink on those words is even dry?
The withdrawal of U.S. forces from South Korea and the dissolution of the U.S.-South Korea alliance may perhaps happen in the near future, but if that does happen, the importance of the U.S.-Japan alliance will instead increase decisively.
There is even speculation from a Foreign Ministry official that “half of the U.S. forces withdrawn from South Korea will come to Japan.”　
All the more so when the United States is intensifying its confrontational stance toward China, there is no country as strategically and geopolitically important as Japan.
And it is said that “the beginning of the process” of the United States’ China policy “was Prime Minister Abe’s visit to the United States in November 2016” (former Chief Strategist and Senior Counselor to the President Steve Bannon, May issue of Hanada).
In that first meeting, Prime Minister Abe focused most of the discussion on the threat from China.
It is hard to imagine this now.
At the U.S.-Japan summit meeting last September, regarding the current state of the alliance, the following exchange took place between Prime Minister Abe and President Trump.
Trump.
“Please do not forget that the U.S. military is spending a considerable amount to protect Japan’s security.”　
Prime Minister Abe.
“That is exactly why we enacted the security-related legislation, and now we are able to help each other with the United States.
We are also protecting U.S. forces.”　
Trump.
“That is wonderful.
But the United States is still bearing a considerable burden for the stationed U.S. forces.”　
Prime Minister Abe.
“Japan bears more of the stationing costs than any other country, and it also provides the bases.
The cost of stationed U.S. forces is lower than it would be if they were in the United States.”
At the end, Trump laughed and said, “You are a genius at rebuttal,” and the discussion ended.　
It is hard to imagine Trump now speaking of scrapping the U.S.-Japan Security Treaty.
However, this remark that he posted on his own Twitter account regarding the tense situation in the Middle East should be taken seriously.　　
“China, Japan, and others should protect their own ships that are making dangerous journeys by themselves.”　
Even without Trump telling us so, only by making efforts ourselves can we obtain the cooperation and support of others.　
(Editorial Board Member and Political Desk Editorial Committee Member)