The US State Department has denied a media report that President Donald Trump privately mentioned pulling his country out of a security pact with Japan.
US news agency Bloomberg reported on Monday that Trump "mused to confidants about withdrawing from a longstanding defense treaty with Japan." It says Trump regards the accord as too one-sided. The report quoted three people.
A spokesperson for the State Department said on Tuesday, "There is no basis to the story" and stressed that the United States "is committed to the US-Japan defense treaty."
The spokesperson said the US-Japan relationship "has never been stronger," adding, "Our forward presence in Japan, including on Okinawa, gives us the ability to protect US national security interests in the Indo-Pacific."
But the spokesperson also said Washington expects its allies "to bear a fair share of defense responsibilities," and that it will "conduct those bilateral discussions in a way that strengthens our alliance and its capabilities. "
