Relaxation in the East? Trump: I'm not sending ground troops to Iran

Japan stands up to the challenge on Iran, unlike NATO, US President Donald Trump said on Thursday during a meeting at the White House with Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi. He noted that NATO is becoming “nicer”, but it is too late. Trump has ruled out sending ground forces to Iran.

– Japan is up to the challenge, unlike NATO – Trump said, announcing that he intended to talk to Takaichi about the Strait of Hormuz, blocked by Iran. He added that he was relying on the declarations made by Japan, without specifying what exactly he meant.

On Thursday, Japan, together with five NATO countries – Great Britain, France, Germany, the Netherlands and Italy – issued a joint statement in which they declared their “readiness to contribute to the efforts necessary to guarantee the safety of traffic in the strait,” but without specifying how they intended to do it.

Speaking to Takaichi, Trump emphasized that NATO is “becoming nicer now that they've seen his approach,” but it's too late for that.

Commenting on Wednesday's Israeli attack on Iran's South Pars gas fields, Trump said he told Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu not to do it again. – We get along great. It's all coordinated. But in some cases, he will do something, and if I don't like it (…) we won't do it anymore, assured the American president.

Takaichi said she came to Washington with “specific proposals aimed at calming the global energy market,” but did not say what those plans were. She also emphasized that Japanese Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi firmly told his Iranian counterpart Abbas Aragchi that Tehran should stop attacks on energy infrastructure facilities.

Answering the question why he did not tell his allies, including Japan, about his plans before starting the war with Iran, Trump cited the example of Japan's attack on the American base at Pearl Harbor in Hawaii in 1941.

– You shouldn't signal your intentions too much in advance. You know, when we went in, we did it very abruptly and we didn't tell anyone about it because we wanted a surprise. Who knows better than the Japanese what a surprise is? Why didn't you tell me about Pearl Harbor? – Trump joked, to the obvious confusion of the head of the Japanese government.

When asked if he planned to send additional troops to the Middle East, Trump said he had no plans to do so.

– No, I'm not sending troops anywhere. If I was sending, I certainly wouldn't tell you, but I'm not sending troops, Trump said. So far, when asked about the use of land forces, the US president has not ruled out any option.

The American leader announced that he would also talk to Takaichi about his upcoming visit to China, which he postponed “by about a month and a half.” He admitted that Japan has sensitive relations with China, but assured that he would “praise Japan” during his conversation with Chinese leader Xi Jinping.

In turn, Takaichi, who sparked a sharp dispute with China in 2025 when she suggested Japan's possible help for Taiwan in the event of a Chinese invasion, declared that Tokyo wanted peaceful relations with Beijing.

– Japan has consistently been open to dialogue with China. Secondly, we have approached our relationship with China in a calm manner, and speaking of the US-China relationship, I sincerely hope that it will promote regional security and also secure the global supply chain, said Takaichi.

From Washington Oskar Górzyński (PAP)

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