[Mr. Trump’s trip to the continent will be
the longest by an American president in more than 25 years, with additional
stops in South Korea, China and the Philippines. Ahead of what his advisers
called a grueling schedule of meetings and summits, the president got a chance
to relax by playing golf on Sunday afternoon with Prime Minister Shinzo Abe of
Japan at Kasumigaseki Country Club.]
By
Julie Hirschfeld Davis
 |
|
President
Trump spoke Sunday at Yokota Air Base in Japan at the beginning
of a 12-day,
five-country trip through Asia. He told American troops, “You are
the greatest
threat to tyrants and dictators who seek to prey on
the
innocent.” Credit Doug Mills/The New York Times
|
TOKYO — President Trump kicked off an extensive
swing through Asia with a campaign-style rally on Sunday with American troops
in Japan, as he looked toward a lengthy trip likely to be dominated by talks on
confronting the nuclear threat from North Korea.
In a speech after Air Force One landed at
Yokota Air Base in Tokyo on a crisp, sunny morning, Mr. Trump never mentioned
Pyongyang by name. Sounding a militaristic tone, he sought to project toughness
in the face of global challenges, saying the United States armed forces stood
ready to defend itself and its allies and “fight to overpower” its adversaries.
“No one — no dictator, no regime and no
nation — should underestimate, ever, American resolve,” Mr. Trump said, having
shed his suit jacket for a leather bomber jacket as he addressed hundreds of
fatigues-clad women and men. “You are the greatest threat to tyrants and
dictators who seek to prey on the innocent.”
Breaking with tradition for American
presidents on foreign soil, Mr. Trump used his speech to promote his domestic
record with a distinct political edge, asserting that the economy and military
were far better off since he became president.
“We are back home starting to do, I will tell
you — and you’re reading, and you’re seeing — really, really well,” Mr. Trump told
the troops, noting that the stock market has surged and unemployment has been
low, with almost two million jobs added “since a very, very special day — it’s
called Election Day.”
“We’ve dealt ISIS one brutal defeat after
another, and it’s about time,” he added, then noting that he had proposed
increases in the defense budget. “That’s a lot different than in the past.”
On his way to Japan, Mr. Trump told reporters
he would probably meet with President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia next week to
discuss the North Korean threat, part of his 12-day, five-country tour through
Asia that is also likely to focus heavily on trade.
White House officials had said that a meeting
by Mr. Trump and Mr. Putin — who last held face-to-face talks in Hamburg,
Germany, in July — was a possibility on the sideline of the upcoming
Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in Da Nang, Vietnam.
“We want Putin’s help on North Korea,” Mr.
Trump said.
The White House also signaled that Mr. Trump
could decide on this trip to designate North Korea a state sponsor of
terrorism, a largely symbolic move since it is already among the world’s most
heavily sanctioned countries. Still, the gesture would reinforce the
administration’s efforts to cast the North as a global pariah.
Rex W. Tillerson, the secretary of state, and
other administration officials are looking at the prospect “very closely,” a
senior White House official told reporters in Tokyo on Sunday, and a decision
will come “very soon.”
The president used his speech on Sunday to
call for building a “free and open Indo-Pacific” region, a new approach to Asia
that is likely to be seen by China as a challenge. The idea, first proposed by
the Japanese and adopted in recent days by Mr. Tillerson, envisions the United
States strengthening ties with three other democracies in the region — Japan,
Australia and India — to contain a rising China.
“We will seek new opportunities for
cooperation and commerce, and we will partner with friends and allies to pursue
a free and open Indo-Pacific region,” Mr. Trump said. “We will seek free fair
and reciprocal trade.”
Mr. Trump’s trip to the continent will be the
longest by an American president in more than 25 years, with additional stops
in South Korea, China and the Philippines. Ahead of what his advisers called a
grueling schedule of meetings and summits, the president got a chance to relax
by playing golf on Sunday afternoon with Prime Minister Shinzo Abe of Japan at
Kasumigaseki Country Club.
The outing was reciprocation for rounds that
Mr. Trump hosted in Jupiter, Fla. and nearby West Palm Beach in February for
Mr. Abe and Ernie Els, once the world’s top golfer. For Sunday’s round, Mr. Abe
invited Hideki Matsuyama, a Japanese golfer ranked fourth in the world. Before
the game, the Japanese prime minister presented Mr. Trump with white caps in
the style of the president’s trademark red “Make America Great Again” trucker
hats; Mr. Abe’s were emblazoned in gold: “Donald and Shinzo Make Alliance Even
Greater.”
“Prime Minister Abe is called a trainer of
wild animals,” said Fumio Hirai, a commentator on a morning news show on Fuji
TV. “And the world is watching how he does with President Trump.”
The already extensive trip grew longer still
on Friday when Mr. Trump abruptly announced to reporters that he would attend
the East Asia Summit in Manila on Nov. 14, adding a day to his travels.
“It is grueling, they tell me, but
fortunately, historically that has not been a problem for me,” Mr. Trump said.
“If I don’t stay fresh, you’ll be the first to tell me. I’ll stay fresh.”
White House officials have framed the trip as
a chance for Mr. Trump to showcase his warm relationships with world leaders
including Mr. Abe and President Xi Jinping of China, as well as to demand trade
deals more favorable to the United States after his decision to withdraw from
the Trans-Pacific Partnership. But it will also highlight the uncertainty in
the region and around the world about what to expect from the Trump
administration, and the degree to which major powers are charting their own
course in the absence of clear signals from the United States.
Mr. Trump also makes the trip hobbled by new
questions about the Russia investigation back in Washington, sharpened in
recent days by revelations that his aides sought to arrange meetings between
him and Mr. Putin during the campaign. In contrast, Mr. Abe and Mr. Xi are
newly empowered, with their countries handing them sweeping mandates.
Mr. Trump denied being at a disadvantage when
reporters noted on Sunday that Mr. Xi was in a particularly powerful position.
“Excuse me, so am I,” Mr. Trump said, citing
stock market gains and low unemployment in the United States, and asserting
that “ISIS is virtually defeated in the Middle East.”
“We are coming off some of the strongest
numbers we’ve ever had, and he knows that and he respects that,” Mr. Trump said
of Mr. Xi. “We’re going in with tremendous strength.”
Mr. Trump’s ability to stay on message during
a lengthy and physically demanding trip will most likely be tested, with many
opportunities for gaffes or intemperate language.
On Sunday, North Korea’s state media accused
Mr. Trump of provoking the country with “foolish remarks” and said “the only
and one way for checking his rash act is to tame him with absolute physical
power.” The commentary in North Korea’s state-run newspaper Rodong Sinmun
added: “We warn Trump’s coteries once again. If they want to avoid ruin, do not
make reckless remarks.”
Asked last week whether the president — who
likes to refer to Kim Jong-un, the North Korean leader, as “Little Rocket Man”
and spoke about raining “fire and fury” on his country — would seek to temper
his rhetoric while he traveled through the region, his national security
adviser was frank.
“The president will use whatever language he
wants to use, obviously,” Lt. Gen. H. R. McMaster told reporters. “I don’t
think the president really modulates his language — have you noticed him do
that?”
Eric Schmitt contributed reporting from
Washington, Motoko Rich from Tokyo and Choe Sang-hun from Seoul.
