Yomiuri: Japanese views on US connections sour on Trump trade - Reuters

As reported by Reuters, Japanese opinions of the country's close ties with the US have taken a massive step back this year as US President Trump pursues all-burn hostile trade policies, as covered by the Yomiuri newspaper.

Key quotes

The poll, which was taken between Nov. 26 and Dec. 3, showed 39 percent of Japanese respondents think the relationship between Japan and the United States is “good”, down from 56 percent in last year’s survey. It was the biggest fall since 2000. Another 39 percent say the relationship is “bad”, up from 23 percent.

Thirty percent of Japanese say they trust the United States, down from 39 percent in the previous survey and the lowest rate since 2000, but 70 percent of American say they trust Japan, the poll showed.

The deterioration in Japan’s public perception of the United States coincides with sharp disagreement with Trump’s trade protectionism.

Some 75 percent of Japanese say Trump’s demand for Tokyo to reduce its trade surplus with the United States is unreasonable, the poll showed.