The US President Donald Trump has dominated headlines for weeks, but this time it’s for a truly unexpected reason. He left Japan’s Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi stunned by comparing the US surprise attack on Iran to Japan’s World War II strike on Pearl Harbor.
Japan’s Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi, who is on a US visit, was visibly caught off guard during Thursday’s bilateral briefing when President Donald Trump compared the US-Israel strikes on Iran to Japan’s 1941 Pearl Harbor attack.
The remarks came while both leaders were answering press questions, and a Japanese reporter asked why the US hadn’t looped in European and Asian allies, including Japan, before striking Iran.
“One thing you don’t want to signal.. when we go in, we went very hard and we didn’t tell anybody about it cause we wanted a surprise.”
“Who knows better about surprise than Japan? Why didn’t you tell me about Pearl Harbour..” he added.
“You believe in surprise, I think much more so than us,” he further stated.
US President’s “surprise” jab was to Japan’s devastating air strike on the US naval base at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, on December 7, 1941, killing 2,390 Americans. The US declared war on Japan the next day, plunging into World War II.
The 32nd US President, Franklin D. Roosevelt called Japan’s attack “a date which will live in infamy.”
The war ended with US atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki in August 1945. Later, the US and Japan signed a peace treaty in 1951 and have been allies ever since.
Trump then justified surprising Iran in the joint US-Israel operation, “We had to surprise them, and we did. That caught them off guard, letting us knock out 50%, way more than expected, in the first two days. Tell everybody beforehand, and it’s no surprise.”
Japanese PM, who looked visibly stunned after the US President’s remarks, later went on to praise him for his efforts in Global peace.
“In the Middle East and also the entire world, we are experiencing a severe security environment. I firmly believe that it is only you, Donald, who can achieve peace across the world, and to do so, I am ready to reach out to many of the partners in the international community to achieve our objective together,” she said.
She further stressed Japan’s firm stance against nuclear proliferation, particularly with regard to Iran.
“Speaking of the situation in Iran, Iran’s development of nuclear weapons must never be allowed, and this is why we have been urging them and also reaching out to other partners of the world,” she added.
In a separate remark, the Japanese Prime Minister strongly condemned Iran’s recent actions in the region.
“Japan condemns Iran’s actions, such as attacking the neighbouring regions and also the effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz. Our Minister also urged the Iranian Foreign Minister to stop such activities. The security environment in the Indo-Pacific region is also becoming increasingly severe,” she said.
President Trump also praised Takachi for her command of English. When a journalist moved to question Trump, he cut her off, saying, “She goes first,” nodding to Takaichi’s translator.
“It’s okay,” the Japanese PM replied.
“Is that okay?” Trump checked, then joked, “Do you understand? It’s very good, I’ll tell you. So nice we don’t have to wait through translation.
I haven’t picked up your language yet, but next time you visit, I’ll have it down.”
Takaichi’s US visit comes amid the ongoing West Asia tensions and also coincides with Japan-China frictions.
