The United States and Japan jointly intervened in currency markets for the first time since 1998, with President Donald Trump calling the move a &#8220;signal of friendship&#8221; toward one of America&#8217;s closest allies.
Asked Monday why the United States stepped in to help strengthen Japan&#8217;s currency, Trump said the decision reflected the close relationship between the two nations while emphasizing that the move would also benefit the United States.
“Everybody wants help from our country,” Trump  said. “We have a good relationship with Japan. We are very strong, very strong financially. And they have a weakening yen and they wanted a little bit of help. And we are always there for Japan. Japan’s been very good for us with the exception of Pearl Harbor. It was really more than anything else, it was a signal of friendship.”
The coordinated intervention, reportedly valued at between $5 billion and $10 billion, marked the first joint U.S.-Japan effort to purchase yen in nearly three decades.
Even before the operation was publicly announced, Reuters photographers captured Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent’s handwritten notes during a Cabinet meeting at Camp David. Among the items on his to-do list: “Buy Japanese Yen (JPY) $5-$10 bil.&#8221; 
Japan’s Finance Ministry said it requested U.S. assistance to <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2026/08/02/business/us-japan-yen.html">counter</a> what it described as “excessive volatility and disorderly movements” in the yen after the currency fell to its weakest level against the U.S. dollar since 1986. As part of the operation, the United States reportedly sold euros to purchase yen. 
Economists <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2026/08/02/business/us-buys-japan-yen-intl-hnk">said</a> the Iran war added pressure to Japan&#8217;s currency by driving up global energy prices, increasing costs for the import-dependent country.
“The energy price shock triggered by the US-Iran war has been the last catalyst for a weaker yen, which has been reinforced by the recent hawkish shift in Fed policy communication,” senior currency economist Lee Hardman said.
Japan repeatedly warned about the conflict&#8217;s economic impact before the intervention. Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi <a href="https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/japan-calls-de-escalation-iran-conflict-2025-06-23/">called</a> for de-escalation in June after warning the war was having an enormous effect on the region. 
Japanese Finance Minister Satsuki Katayama indicated the two countries could intervene again if necessary. Bessent <a href="https://www.ft.com/content/5de204a4-4db6-458c-aa9a-324e6bd5e766?syn-25a6b1a6=1">echoed</a> that position, saying the Treasury Department would “not hesitate to participate in further joint intervention.” 
The Federal Reserve has also allowed Japan to borrow money from the Fed, helping it avoid selling U.S. Treasury securities to support the yen.
The yen climbed to a three-month high Monday following the joint currency intervention. 
The operation comes amid strengthening ties between Washington and Tokyo under the Trump administration. Last year, Japan pledged to invest $550 billion in the United States under a bilateral trade agreement, and Trump publicly <a href="https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/trump-congratulates-japans-takaichi-election-win-2026-02-08/">endorsed</a> Takaichi days ahead of her reelection, calling her &#8220;a highly respected and very popular leader.&#8221;

U.S. President Trump Visits USS George Washington In Japan

Trump Makes Rare Move To Bailout Ally’s Collapsing Currency

currency

Japan

Treasury Department

Trump

A massive earthquake struck the island of Kyushu on Tuesday, registering a magnitude of 7.1 and causing the second floor of the Aeon Mall in Kumamoto to collapse. &#8220;Quite a few&#8221; are feared dead, and more than two dozen remain missing from the mall alone.
Local outlet Kyodo News Agency reported that there may have been an <a href="https://x.com/Osint613/status/2082042649071038541?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">explosion,</a> possibly caused by a <a href="https://nypost.com/2026/07/28/world-news/japan-earthquake-live-updates-reactions-photos-more/">gas leak</a>, just prior to the collapse, and an unknown number of people remained trapped inside. Search and rescue operations began almost immediately, as reported by the Fire and Disaster Management Agency.
Several people were reportedly pulled from the wreckage and as many as 30 employees remain missing after the mall&#8217;s collapse, <a href="https://apnews.com/article/japan-earthquake-tsunami-09e6f40acbcc96053946c9c104e7a242">police</a> told the Kyodo News Agency. A Fuji TV reporter said that a <a href="https://nypost.com/2026/07/28/world-news/japan-earthquake-live-updates-reactions-photos-more/">number of deaths</a> have already been reported at the shopping center — and that &#8220;quite a few&#8221; are still feared to be among the dead.
The epicenter of the quake was near Uto, just south of Kumamoto on Kyushu&#8217;s western coast, roughly 540 miles from Tokyo. The quake prompted a series of tsunami advisories in the Ariake and Yatsushiro Seas, all of which were lifted after several hours. Landslides were also a concern in the immediate aftermath of the quake, which was followed by a series of smaller tremors.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
The Kumamoto earthquake triggered a landslide on Mount Mayu in Shimabara, Nagasaki, Japan. <a href="https://t.co/wXvNMDpJ84">pic.twitter.com/wXvNMDpJ84</a>
— Open Source Intel (@Osint613) <a href="https://x.com/Osint613/status/2082042039357616270?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 28, 2026</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.x.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
Bridges and roads were also damaged in the quake, causing problems for those who are attempting to evacuate the affected areas.
The quake was reportedly measured at just over six miles below the earth&#8217;s surface — relatively shallow — which means that the seismic waves have less distance to travel before reaching the surface and are often stronger near the epicenter than a quake of the same magnitude that began deeper beneath the earth&#8217;s surface. The end result is much greater damage focused near the epicenter of the quake, The Washington Post <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2026/07/28/powerful-earthquake-strikes-southern-japan-causing-destruction/">reported</a>.
Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi told the press that cabinet officials had been dispatched to the area to review the damages, and the Japan Meteorological Agency has warned locals to be prepared for additional aftershocks in the coming days.
<a href="https://apnews.com/article/japan-earthquake-tsunami-09e6f40acbcc96053946c9c104e7a242">Additionally</a>, nearly 50,000 households were left without power after the quake — and more than 300,000 people were told to leave their homes and head to evacuation centers for the time being. Local trains and airports have temporarily suspended operations and are undergoing safety checks.
Almost 100 people have already been taken to local hospitals — at least 40 in Yatsushiro and another 50 in Kumamoto.
&#8220;We are aware of the 7.1 magnitude earthquake in Kumamoto, and USFJ leaders have been in touch with our partners in the Japan Self-Defense Forces. Initial reports indicate no damage to any U.S. facilities in the region. Our thoughts and prayers are with our Japanese hosts,&#8221; U.S. Forces Japan <a href="https://x.com/USForcesJapan/status/2082092855842189688?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">said</a>.

TOPSHOT-JAPAN-EARTHQUAKE

Massive Earthquake Traps People In Collapsed Shopping Mall, ‘Quite A Few’ Feared Dead

Massive Earthquake Rocks Japan, 'Quite A Few' Feared Dead

Disasters

earthquake

Natural Disaster

The Auburn University student who disappeared in Japan has been found dead, his mother said on Facebook Saturday.
James “Weston” Higginbotham was found by a volunteer search-and-rescue group outside of Kyoto, Nancy Higginbotham <a href="https://www.facebook.com/nancy.higginbotham.50/posts/pfbid02ziddTrQ5h3QGquHD4cjJTtQ5sgcXUgNudkf9Gpdg2X6bGxMNBaJ3ZzoNJdFF1zGQl">wrote</a>. Additional details such as cause of death are not currently known.
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“The grief we feel is impossible to put into words,” Higginbotham said. “We are deeply grateful to the countless people across the United States, Japan, and around the world who shared Weston’s story, prayed for our family, offered encouragement, and helped in the search efforts. The outpouring of kindness and support has carried us through the darkest days of our lives.”
Weston, 20, vanished May 29 after deciding to explore on his own, The Daily Wire previously <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/search-intensifies-for-auburn-student-missing-in-japan">reported</a>. He and his mother had argued over the use of ChatGPT to help navigate the family’s vacation, and Weston often went exploring “to blow off steam,” Nancy said.
Local police said Weston left Kyoto Station alone before he was last seen on surveillance footage in Yamashina, on a path leading to a hiking trail in nearby woods, CNN <a href="https://edition.cnn.com/2026/06/04/us/weston-missing-american-student-japan-hnk">reported</a>. Higginbotham said Weston was found in “a mountainous area.”
Search efforts had focused on wooded, mountainous terrain outside Kyoto, where Higginbotham was ultimately found by the rescue group, according to his mother. Authorities believed Weston may have entered after leaving the trail area.
Dozens of Japanese authorities, along with search dogs and helicopters, were searching for Weston amid waist-high mud after a typhoon struck the area.
The family had asked people to share Weston’s photo on social media to help people in Japan recognize him.
“We shared our story here and in the media in the hope of finding Weston,” Nancy said on Facebook. “We now ask for privacy as we begin to navigate this unimaginable loss. Thank you for your thoughts, prayers, and support. We will need them now more than ever.”

Credit: Nancy Higginbotham

Missing Auburn Student Weston Higginbotham Found Dead In Japan

auburn

College students

An Auburn University student has vanished in Japan on a family vacation without a trace.
James &#8220;Weston&#8221; Higginbotham, a 20-year-old from Birmingham, has been missing since May 29. Higginbotham never returned from a train station in the Kyoto area. His mother, Nancy, said in a Facebook post her son may be in &#8220;emotional distress,&#8221; calling the search &#8220;urgent.&#8221;
Weston decided to go explore on his own after an argument with his mother, saying he needed some space. Nancy told <a href="https://edition.cnn.com/2026/06/04/us/weston-missing-american-student-japan-hnk">CNN</a> she grew concerned when his phone location was turned off. She told the outlet that a disagreement arose between them over the use of ChatGPT to help navigate their trip.
&#8220;It’s not unusual for Weston to blow off steam going to the woods and just exploring. That’s his happy place,&#8221; Higginbotham told CNN. &#8220;I’m thinking … he’s just off in the woods, and he got lost.&#8221;
Reality quickly set in by 2 a.m. local time. Weston’s parents reported him missing, and Nancy and Keith are not leaving Japan until their son is found. Their determination to find their son is helping the search for him grow.
Local police said Weston left Kyoto Station alone at 6 p.m. Friday and was last seen on surveillance footage around 8 p.m. in Yamashina. Weston was on a path that led to a hiking trail in the nearby woods, per CNN.
Now dozens of Japanese authorities are assisting in the search in the Yamashina area as it approaches the one-week mark.
&#8220;As the missing young man is unfamiliar with the area, we consider it vital to locate him as soon as possible and are doing everything possible to ensure his safe recovery at the earliest opportunity,&#8221; a Kyoto prefectural police officer in charge of the case told CNN.
Crews on Thursday were forced to search through waist-high mud for Weston after a typhoon hit the area earlier in the week.
Weston’s mom said in a statement that search dogs and helicopters have also been deployed, adding that the area where she believes Weston is missing has plenty of water and some berries for food.
&#8220;There is still hope,&#8221; Nancy said.
The heartbroken mother is encouraging Americans to share Weston&#8217;s photo on social media. She said that is the best way to get his face out to people in Japan. The search will resume on Friday, with Japanese police planning to use additional surveillance footage to follow up on another lead. Nancy added that authorities are also deploying a smaller team to the forest.
&#8220;Our emotions are all over the place and every time we lose hope for a second, we receive an encouraging message from you,” Nancy said. “It keeps us going. We will find Weston.&#8221;

Search Intensifies For Auburn Student Missing In Japan

Desperate Search Continues For Auburn Student Missing In Japan As Week-Mark Lingers

Missing Person

News

The long-awaited sequel to 2006’s smash hit “The Devil Wears Prada” is getting some pushback, being accused of “blatant racism” for leaning into Asian stereotypes.
“The Devil Wears Prada 2,” starring Anne Hathaway and Meryl Streep, is getting blasted over a brief moment in a trailer. The scene introduces Andy Sachs&#8217; (Hathaway) new assistant, Jin Chao, played by Helen J. Shen, who some say is portrayed as a nerdy, socially awkward Ivy League grad.
In the trailer, Andy appears reserved upon meeting Jin, prompting the assistant to quickly rattle off her credentials.
“If you don’t want me, you can interview someone else. That’s totally fine,” Jin says. “I did go to Yale, 3.86 GPA, lead soprano of [Yale singing group] the Whiffenpoofs, and my ACT score was 36 on the very first time.”
Commenters also took issue with the way Jin donned a buttoned-up collared shirt and thick glasses, which they argue feel out of place for employees at a major fashion company.
Social media users from around the world, especially in Asian countries, expressed their frustration with the clip.
“The promotion up to this point was really great, but right before release, they suddenly hit us with blatant anti-Asian racism and flipped the car,” one user in Japan wrote in a post that’s been viewed more than 16 million times.
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プラダを着た悪魔、ここまでのプロモーションめっちゃ良かったのに、公開直前に突然ド直球のアジア人差別を見せつけてきて横転 <a href="https://t.co/uNUYIzXl7U">https://t.co/uNUYIzXl7U</a>
— 黄色人種ちゃん (@dekaketu_purin) <a href="https://twitter.com/dekaketu_purin/status/2046767047435247708?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 22, 2026</a></blockquote>
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“We are in 2026… what made them think we’ll find this kind of racism funny,” another commenter <a href="https://x.com/kaxishk/status/2046919948384243754?s=20">said</a>. 
“Short stature, messy hair, childish clothing, big glasses, a ton of qualifications and high education and grades, servile and incompetent, a name that sounds just like &#8216;Ching Chang Chong,'&#8221; a third person echoed. “In this day and age, deliberately clipping out such a thick, over-the-top level of Asian stereotype that&#8217;s actually rare nowadays for ad use—did they judge that going full-on with the blatant discrimination would be more commercially appealing??”
As The Hollywood Reporter <a href="https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-news/devil-wears-prada-2-racism-backlash-asia-1236574540/">noted</a>, a lot of the widespread criticism is the result of X posts being automatically translated, meaning comments from around the world are being circulated in the United States.
However, some, including Korean-American filmmaker Joseph Kahn, said the backlash reflects a cultural misunderstanding and claims that Jin is so weird she’s cool, at least to a Gen Z audience. 
“There&#8217;s an uproar with Japanese Twitter about this Asian character. They feel she&#8217;s a caricature, which she is, but not about Asians but Gen Z. Her outfit is actually very couture in a film about fashion,” he <a href="https://x.com/JosephKahn/status/2047085534103932968?s=20">wrote</a>.
“Her glasses and hair clips are of the moment. The body shape disparity comes from Anne Hathaway who mandated there would be &#8216;diversity of sizes&#8217; which could either be taken as genuine virtue signaling or an actress wanting to be the skinniest and tallest onscreen. Nevertheless, the Asian character is being depicted as a fashionable, striver in the fashion world with typical Gen Z neurodivergency.”
&#8220;Nerds don&#8217;t exist in Gen Z because they&#8217;re all awkward freaks and all dress like Nintendo cartoons,” he concluded. “Anyway Japan, welcome to America.”

Devil Wears Prada 2

Long-Awaited Hollywood Sequel Is Already Making Enemies

Entertainment

Hollywood

Movies

Racism

If you thought America’s love of Japan was only about Hibachi restaurants, Anime teens, and The Karate Kid reboots, you haven’t spent enough time on X. Last weekend, the admiration entered a new phase as the social media platform boosted an AI-enabled translation tool, making exchanging and sharing posts easier between Japanese and American users.
What resulted was a pleasant and outright wholesome font of positive vibes that seemed out of place in the notoriously cynical virtual world of hot takes, hate bots, and culture wars. The website Pirate Wires noticed and published an <a href="https://www.piratewires.com/p/japan-is-americas-greatest-ally-and">essay</a> doubling down on the niche community, heaping praise on the newfound old love between Japan and America. In it, the authors point to President Trump’s bromance with the late Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, love of American BBQ, and shared technological and military goals, all of which are true and good, but that’s only part of the story.
While it appears the Japanese people are living their best lives cosplaying Americana at <a href="https://tasteofcountry.com/authentic-honky-tonk-bar-tokyo-japan/">Honky Tonk bars</a> and showing off their <a href="https://www.topspeed.com/japans-love-affair-with-american-muscle-cars/">classic cruisers</a>, the Pirate Wires take is a little deceiving. What’s missing is the 1980s working-class anxiety and animosity toward our now Eastern besties — a sentiment not felt since the Greatest Generation came back from raising the flag on Mt. Suribachi and refused to buy Toyotas.
Japan’s rapid post-WWII industrialization and investment in technology paid off economically and sparked a transpacific rivalry, trade war, and manufacturing insecurity on par with a Rocky-versus-Drago fight of the century, if not a little less…violent. The Cold War rightly absorbs much of the attention when recalling the era, but as the Soviet Union was showing signs of losing its grip, Japan was becoming a real threat to the United States’ industrial domination — and the repercussions were being felt in homes, boardrooms, and factories across the country. Toyota and Honda exploded onto the automotive scene, helping usher in Detroit’s demise. Japanese technology, such as portable radios, video games, and televisions, was grabbing more market share from American companies like RCA. Even America’s trophy landmarks were being taken over. In 1989, Mitsubishi Estate took control of Rockefeller Center, a capstone acquisition following the Japanese corporation&#8217;s acquisitions of Firestone Tire &amp; Rubber and Columbia Pictures.
This tension was reflected in pop culture entertainment — think Ron Howard’s 1986 film Gung Ho, where Michael Keaton plays a foreman at an American auto manufacturing plant taken over by a Japanese corporation. The film is a comedy, but it mirrors the zeitgeist of the time. There was also Rising Sun, Kinjite, and imagined futures that look strikingly Japanese, such as Blade Runner and Robocop 3; Die Hard takes place in Nakatomi Plaza. Tom Clancy even explores this theme in his novel &#8220;Debt of Honor,&#8221; in which the protagonist, Jack Ryan, fights a &#8220;secret cabal of Japanese industrialists.&#8221;
But enough with nuance. The biggest takeaway from the situation is the display of understated power and the magnitude of influence and reach American culture has had from the mid-20th century forward. And even though there have been some notable outside foreign influences permeating these liberty-laden shores, it’s far from an even exchange.
We gave the world jazz and rock and roll, fast food and blue jeans, baseball and John Wayne Westerns. Sure, we got the British Invasion and Crocodile Dundee, but what would France do without Jerry Lewis and Germany without David Hasselhoff? I’m only half-kidding. American cultural influence was instrumental in winning the Cold War — there was even an underground pipeline of Chuck Norris <a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt2442080/">films</a> to undermine the communists — and who could deny Roger Goodell’s not-so-secret <a href="https://media.nfl.com/news-and-releases/international/nfl-s-global-markets-program-expands-in-2026-with-addition-of-it">plan</a> for the NFL to take over the world?
So while our “special” relationship with Japan is great, it’s not exactly novel. America’s cultural influence is a force for good in the world, and it’s a shame the mainstream media has ignored it in favor of authoritarian worship, evidenced by the rise of <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2026/02/25/asia/chinamaxxing-americans-soft-power-intl-hnk-dst">stories</a> about “Chinamaxxing.”
Good for Pirate Wires to report a feel-good story that most of the media ignored, even if it wasn&#8217;t a complete picture. It’s important to remember that for all the reports of America’s demise, we’re still going strong — and in unexpected corners of the world and in unexpected ways. Far from the evil empire that snobby Europeans or elitist media personalities would have you believe, we just want to spread some good old-fashioned American fun. Because in the long run, that makes better friends than enemies.

Patriotic cowboy boots

Hate Us Or Love Us, Everyone Still Wants To Be American

America

American History

Social Media

World

The following is an edited transcript excerpt from <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/episode/mks-ep-1936-sub?elementPosition=1&amp;row=0&amp;rowHeadline=Recent+Episodes&amp;rowType=Horizontal+Show+Episodes+Carousel">The Michael Knowles Show</a>.
* * *
President Trump just gave the finest one liner in the history of press conferences. 
So here is President Trump, sitting in the Oval Office yesterday with the Japanese prime minister, who seems to adore him. When she arrives at the White House, for example, she runs up and gives him a big hug. He proceeds to show her the Hall of Presidents, on the White House little walkway there by the Rose Garden, and she sees Joe Biden&#8217;s picture is just an auto pen and seems to get a huge kick out of it.
Trump also got along famously with Shinzo Abe. So, there&#8217;s something about Trump and Japan — they get along great. It&#8217;s like white on rice, to use an apt metaphor.
In any case, while they&#8217;re sitting in the Oval Office, a reporter asks President Trump why he did not tell everyone about the attack on Iran before he launched it.
“Japan and U.S. are very good friends. But one question — why didn&#8217;t you tell U.S. allies in Europe and Asia, like Japan, about the war before taking action? We are very confused.”
Trump responded, “Well, one thing — you don’t want to signal too much. When we go in, we went in very hard, and we didn’t tell anybody about it because we wanted surprise. Who knows better about surprise than Japan? Okay? Why didn’t you tell me about Pearl Harbor? Right? He’s asking me, do you believe in surprise? I think much more so than us.”
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
Trump: &#8220;Who knows better about surprise than Japan? Why didn&#8217;t you tell me about Pearl Harbor?&#8221; <a href="https://t.co/O5t0EWoOkw">pic.twitter.com/O5t0EWoOkw</a>
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) <a href="https://twitter.com/atrupar/status/2034664767256658127?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 19, 2026</a></blockquote>
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Just magnificent. I don’t know how to frame a clip, but that’s it. No one will ever beat it.
Jeremy Boreing took me out for dinner last night for my birthday, and we were talking about how Trump is Elvis. Trump is Elvis. Now, Jeremy has criticized Trump many times over the years, but he believes the guy is just amazing at this. He’s Elvis.
So, Trump is sitting there, and he gets the question: Why didn’t you tell people about the attack?
And he starts to give a serious answer by saying: Well, you know, I didn’t want to signal…
And then that showbiz brain kicks in: Hey — who knows more about surprises than you guys?
At that point he could have gotten up, grabbed a stool, lit a cigarette, spotlight on him like he’s in a comedy club in New York: Let me tell you about these guys… we got some of our Japanese friends here, am I right? You guys know a little bit about surprises? Why didn’t you tell me about Pearl Harbor?
Just a great bit.
<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/episode/mks-ep-1936-sub?elementPosition=1&amp;row=0&amp;rowHeadline=Recent+Episodes&amp;rowType=Horizontal+Show+Episodes+Carousel"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="size-large wp-image-1054531 aligncenter" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/03/MK-watch-now-1-1024x171.jpg" alt="DailyWire+" width="1024" height="171" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/03/MK-watch-now-1-1024x171.jpg 1024w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/03/MK-watch-now-1-300x50.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/03/MK-watch-now-1-768x128.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/03/MK-watch-now-1-1536x256.jpg 1536w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/03/MK-watch-now-1.jpg 1800w" sizes=" (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /></a>
I’m going to miss him very, very much after his fourth or fifth term — whatever. I know, at a certain point, after he’s 120 years old, life will take its course. But I’m just sorry we’re already in the second term. We’ve only got, what, two or three terms left?
It’s beautiful.
And it’s not just funny — it’s a serious point. The serious point he’s making is that you don’t telegraph your moves when you’re engaging in war, even when you’re engaging in ordinary politics. And he conveys that serious point with humor, and people take note.
Antonin Scalia used to do this in his Supreme Court opinions and dissents. He would use funny lines like “applesauce,” and “did you ask the nearest hippie?” These are real lines Scalia used. Why did he do it? Because it&#8217;s funny and it grabs your attention. It’s memorable. It sticks in the minds of law students and it&#8217;s going to shape American jurisprudence.
Same thing here.
Very, very funny — and very, very smart.

US-JAPAN-POLITICS-DIPLOMACY-TAKAICHI-TRUMP

President Trump Drops The Greatest One Liner In Press Conference History

Donald Trump

Iran

Middle East

Opinion

Pearl Harbor

White House

America&#8217;s allies are finally ready to step up to the plate after years of dithering on the Iranian threat.
Those allies are ready with all their combined strength: Germany, France, UK, Italy, the Netherlands, Canada, and Japan. They are firing on all cylinders with urgency, resolve, and action.
Yes, that&#8217;s right. Our allies, who have been reliant on our largesse and mutual defense for decades, finally announced that they are going to help us, their patron state, the United States — with a very strongly-worded letter.
Our allies are doing what they do best. They are saying things.
At some point, the questions have to be asked: Who are our true allies? Who is actually stepping up to the plate? Who is merely judging from the sidelines?
In lieu of any real world support, our valiant allies have now issued a strongly worded letter.
<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/episode/bss-ep-2392-sub?elementPosition=1&amp;row=6&amp;rowHeadline=Latest+Episodes&amp;rowType=Horizontal+Show+Episodes+Carousel"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="size-large wp-image-974957" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/09/511983dad25841c8b1ec058d75769bbe-1024x171.webp" alt="DailyWire+" width="1024" height="171" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/09/511983dad25841c8b1ec058d75769bbe-1024x171.webp 1024w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/09/511983dad25841c8b1ec058d75769bbe-300x50.webp 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/09/511983dad25841c8b1ec058d75769bbe-768x128.webp 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/09/511983dad25841c8b1ec058d75769bbe-1536x256.webp 1536w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/09/511983dad25841c8b1ec058d75769bbe-2048x341.webp 2048w" sizes=" (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /></a>
Here&#8217;s what the letter says:
<blockquote>We condemn in the strongest terms, recent attacks by Iran on unarmed commercial vessels in the Gulf, attacks on civilian infrastructure, including oil and gas installations, and the de facto closure of the Strait of Hormuz by Iranian forces. We express our deep concern about the escalating conflict.
We call on Iran to cease immediately its threats, laying of mines and drone and missile attacks and other attempts to block the strait to commercial shipping and to comply with U.N. Security Council Resolution 28-17. We call for an immediate comprehensive moratorium on attacks on civilian infrastructure, including oil and gas installations. We call on all states to respect international law and uphold the fundamental principles of international prosperity and security.</blockquote>
Whoa, dude. Harsh stuff.
Iran must be quaking in its boots. Our allies are saying things.
The Europeans, Japan? They&#8217;re expressing “deep concern.” Not “regular” concern. “Deep” concern. They are calling on Iran to do things and to stop being so mean.
But wait, isn&#8217;t there some sort of commitment to action in the letter?
The statement does say this: “We express our readiness to contribute to appropriate efforts to ensure a safe passage through the Strait. We welcome the commitment of nations who are engaging in preparatory planning.”
That sounds good, right? But what does “appropriate efforts” mean? Who decides what is “appropriate?”
According to <a href="https://www.axios.com/2026/03/19/strait-hormuz-coalition-allies-statement-uk">Axios</a>, “On Thursday morning, NATO head Mark Rutte and British Prime Minister Keir Starmer spoke with French President Emmanuel Macron and convinced him to lift his opposition to the political statement of support, while leaving the discussion on the practical steps for later.”
Now, to be fair to Rutte, there&#8217;s not much he can do. He&#8217;s the head of NATO, but he can&#8217;t simply deploy force. He certainly recognizes the Iranian threat, and he would like to avoid alienating the United States.
He said, “We all agree, as we always did, that it was crucial for Iran not to get its hands on a nuclear capability, a ballistic missile capability. And what the U.S. is doing at the moment is degrading that capability of Iran. And I think that&#8217;s very important. This is important for European security, for the Middle East. It is vital for Israel itself.”
 The Japanese are also paying lip service here; the Japanese prime minister told President Trump, “I firmly believe that it is only you, Donald, who can achieve peace across the world,” adding they would “reach out to many of the partners in the international community, to achieve our objective together.”
So what are our allies actually committing to?
Nothing. This sort of stupidity is nothing new for our allies, who are quite fond of empty verbiage as a substitute for credible threat of force.
Go all the way back to 1919, when the covenant of the League of Nations was integrated into the Treaty of Versailles. That attempt to form a family of nations — while it was not a success — led to 1928, when 15 countries came together to sign what was called the Kellogg-Briand Pact.
It outlawed war.
Did you know that? That war was outlawed in 1928? The signatories included France, the US, UK, Ireland, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, India, Belgium, Poland, Czechoslovakia, Germany, Italy, and Japan. 47 more nations joined in as well.
And then, three years later, in 1931, Japan invaded Manchuria and nobody did anything. And by 1941, every single nation that had signed the treaty, with the exception of Ireland — which basically stayed out of the war and sided with Germany — was enmeshed in World War II.
Empty verbiage.
The same thing holds true today. For decades, our allies have pretended to oppose the Iranian terror regime while doing virtually nothing to hold them accountable. They&#8217;ve imposed some rather minor sanctions targeting specific officials, unless the United States has pushed them into broader sanctions.
We&#8217;ve had to do all the hard work, as per our usual arrangement.
So here&#8217;s the deal. If we&#8217;re going to do all the work and undertake all the sacrifice and spend the blood and treasure, then we ought to reap the benefit. 
There&#8217;s been a lot of talk about what the United States ought to do next with regard to Iran. The most obvious move, and one I&#8217;ve been advocating, is for the United States to seize Kharg Island. President Trump has been suggesting for a while that this may happen.
Nearly 90% of all Iranian oil passes through Kharg Island. The Iranians have already, in large part, shut the Strait of Hormuz. They&#8217;ve already upped the ante in terms of attacks on surrounding gas and oil facilities. So the United States doesn&#8217;t have tremendous downside here.
What&#8217;s Iran going to do, attack more oil facilities? We ought to seize control of the oil, and then we ought to let American companies keep pumping it, and then we ought to send it to its final destination, China. China would then know that we are in charge of the spigot; Iran&#8217;s terrorist government would be deprived of their monetary flow.
What about the Europeans?
If the price of oil rises, they can buy it from us, not the Iranians.
If they&#8217;re not going to join us as allies, they can pay our companies for the oil.

NATO Leaders Attend 2025 Summit In The Hague

Fake Allies And Backstabbers

Ben Shapiro

European Union

NATO

Strait of Hormuz

While taking questions from reporters on Thursday, President Donald Trump blindsided Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi with made a joke referencing the 1941 surprise attack initiated by the Empire of Japan on the American naval base at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii.
The question, from one of the reporters in the Oval Office, was about the current joint operation in Iran undertaken by the United States and Israel — specifically, why President Trump had not spoken with allies in Europe or Japan prior to initiating an attack against the Iranian regime.
WATCH:
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
Q: &#8220;Why didn&#8217;t you tell U.S. allies…about the war before attacking Iran?&#8221;
President Trump: &#8220;We wanted surprise. Who knows better about surprise than Japan? Why didn&#8217;t you tell me about Pearl Harbor?&#8221; <a href="https://t.co/esV9iyvMiV">pic.twitter.com/esV9iyvMiV</a>
— CSPAN (@cspan) <a href="https://twitter.com/cspan/status/2034667305318187239?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 19, 2026</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
&#8220;Japan and U.S. are very good friends,&#8221; the reporter began. &#8220;But one question: why didn&#8217;t you tell U.S. Allies in Europe and Asia, like Japan, about the war before attacking Iran? So we are very confused about — we, Japanese citizens —&#8221;
&#8220;Well, one thing, you don&#8217;t want to signal too much,&#8221; Trump replied, arguing that it was unwise to give away too much of the planning before taking military action. &#8220;You know, when we go in, we went in very hard, and we didn&#8217;t tell anybody about it because we wanted surprise. Who knows better about surprise than Japan? Why didn&#8217;t you tell me about Pearl Harbor? Okay? Right?&#8221;
Prime Minister Takaichi appeared to be slightly uncomfortable as several around the room began to laugh.
&#8220;He&#8217;s asking me — no, you believe in surprise I think much more so than us,&#8221; Trump continued, pivoting back to Iran. &#8220;But we had to surprise them and we did. And because of that surprise, we knocked out — the first two days, we probably knocked out 50% of what we — and much more than we anticipated.&#8221;
&#8220;So if I go and tell everybody about it, it&#8217;s no longer a surprise, right?&#8221; the president concluded.

President Trump Hosts Japan’s Prime Minister Takaichi At White House

Trump Defends Keeping Allies In The Dark With Unexpected Pearl Harbor Quip

Media

Military

Politics

Toyota CEO Akio Toyoda was smiling for photos and giving two thumbs up as he donned a red “Make America Great Again” hat and a Trump-Vance shirt during an American-themed NASCAR event in Japan over the weekend.
“I’m not here to argue whether tariffs are good or bad. Every national leader wants to protect their own industry,” Toyoda <a href="https://www.autonews.com/toyota/an-toyota-akio-toyoda-maga-nascar-trump-japan-tariff-1116/">said</a> ahead of the exhibition. “We are exploring ways to make tariffs a winner for everyone. The people we want most to be winners are our customers.”
Japan now has a roughly 15% baseline tariff on auto imports, down from 27.5% following September trade negotiations.
The America-themed celebration at Fuji Speedway featured top NASCAR drivers, fans waving American flags, and an appearance from U.S. Ambassador to Japan George Glass. The ambassador posted photos of himself at the event alongside the caption, “Start your engines! &#8230; Looking forward to celebrating the culture of motorsports again next year, as part of our [America250] festivities in Japan.” 
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
Toyota Chairman Akio Toyoda showed up to a NASCAR event on Sunday repping MAGA gear.
BASED 🔥🔥🔥🇺🇸 <a href="https://t.co/NnkbuJaNfk">pic.twitter.com/NnkbuJaNfk</a>
— Trump War Room (@TrumpWarRoom) <a href="https://twitter.com/TrumpWarRoom/status/1990855538045792277?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 18, 2025</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
The event came days before the carmaker announced on Tuesday a $912 million investment in its U.S. manufacturing operations, aimed at expanding hybrid production in Southern states.
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Per Motor Intelligence <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2025/11/18/toyota-hybrid-plants.html">data</a>, Toyota currently has more than 51% market share of hybrid vehicles through the third quarter of this year.
“Customers are embracing Toyota’s hybrid vehicles, and our U.S. manufacturing teams are gearing up to meet that growing demand,” Kevin Voelkel, Toyota Motor North America senior vice president of manufacturing operations, <a href="https://pressroom.toyota.com/toyota-boosts-hybrid-production-with-912-million-investment-creating-252-new-u-s-manufacturing-jobs/">said</a>. “Toyota’s philosophy is to build where we sell, and by adding more American jobs and investing across our U.S. footprint, we continue to stay true to that philosophy.”
Toyota announced last week it will invest as much as $10 billion into the United States over the next five years, <a href="https://www.latimes.com/business/story/2025-11-14/toyota-confirms-up-to-10-billion-investment-in-u-s">confirming</a> what President Donald Trump had said in October after meeting with the company’s CEO.

Akio Toyoda

Toyota CEO Goes Full MAGA At NASCAR Event Then Drops $912M On U.S. Jobs

Toyota CEO Rocks MAGA Hat At NASCAR Event, Then Announces Nearly $1B Boost To U.S. Manufacturing

Business

Cars

Economy

MAGA

Tariffs

TOKYO — Long associated with American ruggedness, pickup trucks such as Ford&#8217;s top-selling F-150 have now become a symbol of international trade talks, showing how far countries such as Japan will go to win over U.S. President Donald Trump.
When Trump met Japan&#8217;s new prime minister and first female premier, Sanae Takaichi, in Tokyo on Tuesday, an F-150 was parked prominently outside the Akasaka Palace venue.
Burly U.S. pickup trucks are a rare sight in the Japanese capital, where the streets are narrow and turns can be tight.
But the placement of the F-150, which is not typically available for sale in Japan, sent a clear message about Tokyo&#8217;s willingness to buy more cars from its ally, an issue that has been a sticking point for Trump for decades.
Last week, Reuters reported that Takaichi&#8217;s government was working on a package to buy F-150 trucks, an idea originally floated by Trump, as well as soybeans and gas.
&#8220;Well, that&#8217;s great. She has good taste,&#8221; Trump told reporters on Air Force One, when asked about the report. &#8220;That’s a hot truck.&#8221;
In August, Trump said Japan was ready to purchase the &#8220;very beautiful&#8221; F-150.
It was not clear how many F-150s Japan planned to buy.
Japanese government sources have told Reuters the trucks would probably end up being used as snow plows, given their size.
Japan and Europe, Trump has often argued, refuse to accept U.S. cars even as Japanese and European automakers sell millions of their vehicles each year in the United States.
The F-150 won&#8217;t be the first American car brought in to Japan to help ease trade friction. Three decades ago, Toyota responded to U.S. pressure by selling a mid-sized General Motors car under its own brand in Japan.
The Toyota Cavalier was introduced with much fanfare, sold poorly, and quietly faded after a few years, said John Shook, a former Toyota manager and an auto industry veteran in both Japan and the United States.
A third of the 3.7 million new cars sold in Japan last year were mini or &#8220;kei&#8221; cars, tiny vehicles that are not produced by American automakers.
Foreign cars accounted for 6% of new car sales overall, with European brands among some of the top sellers, industry data showed, while Ford itself pulled out of Japan almost a decade ago.
Separately, Trump said Toyota would open auto plants in the United States to the tune of $10 billion.
A Toyota spokesperson was not immediately available to comment on Trump&#8217;s remarks.
(Reporting by Trevor Hunnicutt and David Dolan; Additional reporting by Maki Shiraki; Editing by Clarence Fernandez and Ros Russell)

A Ford F-150 and a Toyota pickup truck are parked outside of Akasaka Palace, in Tokyo

Trump’s ‘Hot Truck’ Becomes Symbol Of Japan Trade Talks

Ford Motor Co.

trade

Newly elected conservative Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi, the first woman to hold that position, vowed to increase her country&#8217;s defense and security commitments during a meeting with President Donald Trump on the USS George Washington in Japan on Tuesday.
Takaichi joined Trump on the massive U.S. aircraft carrier in front of around 6,000 U.S. service members as Trump continued his week-long Asia tour, The Wall Street Journal <a href="https://www.wsj.com/world/asia/trump-hails-golden-era-in-japan-relations-63888687?mod=hp_lead_pos5">reported</a>.
&#8220;As the two commanders-in-chief of Japan and the United States stand together once again, I have renewed my determination &#8230; to make the Indo-Pacific free and open so that it will serve as the foundation of peace and prosperity for the entire region,&#8221; Takaichi <a href="https://x.com/RapidResponse47/status/1983075074174238770">told</a> the crowd of U.S. military members. &#8220;Now, we are facing an unprecedented severe security environment. Peace cannot be preserved by words alone. It can be protected only when there is unwavering determination and action.&#8221;
Trump praised Takaichi, whom he called &#8220;a winner,&#8221; and said, “The cherished alliance between the United States and Japan is one of the most remarkable relationships in the entire world.&#8221;
&#8220;Born out of the ashes of a terrible war, our bond has grown over eight decades into the beautiful friendship that we have,&#8221; Trump added. &#8220;It&#8217;s the foundation of peace and security in the Pacific.&#8221;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-media-max-width="560">
&#8220;This woman is a winner!&#8221;<a href="https://twitter.com/POTUS?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@POTUS</a> welcomes Japanese Prime Minister <a href="https://twitter.com/takaichi_sanae?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@takaichi_sanae</a> on stage aboard the USS George Washington. <a href="https://t.co/rzOsyQNPd8">pic.twitter.com/rzOsyQNPd8</a>
— Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) <a href="https://twitter.com/RapidResponse47/status/1983073765803131230?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 28, 2025</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
Trump also <a href="https://www.foxnews.com/world/trump-says-missiles-japans-f-35s-arrive-this-week-during-visit-uss-george-washington">said</a> on Tuesday that he had just approved a &#8220;batch of missiles&#8221; for Japan&#8217;s F-35 fighter jets, which are set to arrive later this week. The president has been pushing U.S. allies worldwide to boost their defense spending as he seeks more favorable trade deals and security arrangements for the United States.
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Last week, during Takaichi&#8217;s inaugural address as prime minister, she vowed to ramp up Japan&#8217;s defense spending more quickly. Instead of increasing defense spending to 2% of the country&#8217;s gross domestic product by 2027, Takaichi said she wants to jump to 2% by the end of the upcoming fiscal year in March, The Wall Street Journal reported. Japan currently spends 1.4% of its GDP on defense.
Japan&#8217;s new leader made the security spending promises as the United States and its allies face the continued Chinese threat in the region. Trump is set to meet with Chinese communist leader Xi Jinping on Thursday in South Korea, where he hopes to nail down a trade deal.
The Trump administration is also seeking to secure rare earth mineral supply chains to counter China&#8217;s stranglehold on critical minerals. Trump and Takaichi <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/more-trump-trade-wins-u-s-and-japan-strike-rare-earth-pact-announce-strategic-investment-deal?topStoryPosition=undefined&amp;author=Zach+Jewell&amp;category=News&amp;elementPosition=1&amp;row=1&amp;rowHeadline=Top+Stories&amp;rowType=Top+Stories&amp;title=More+Trump+Trade+Wins%3A+U.S.+And+Japan+Strike+Rare+Earth+Pact%2C+Announce+Strategic+Investment+Deal">announced</a> on Tuesday that they had reached a rare earth deal, which establishes a mutual stockpiling arrangement and stipulates that the United States and Japan will cooperate with international partners to protect the supply chain.
Japan and the United States also released a list of proposed projects to boost Japanese investment in the U.S. economy by more than $500 billion. The proposed investments included projects in the energy and artificial intelligence sectors.

New Japanese Prime Minister Vows Stronger Defense As Trump Hails ‘Cherished Alliance’

Global Politics

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