Japan’s Akazawa Heads to US for Third Round of Trade Talks

Japan’s top trade negotiator Ryosei Akazawa set off Friday for the US for a third round of trade talks with the Trump administration, with Tokyo determined to avoid a deal that doesn’t address levies on its key auto industry.

“An agreement can’t be reached unless both sides are satisfied,” Akazawa told reporters Friday at Haneda airport in Tokyo before his departure. “The US has its own national interests. And Japan naturally has its own national interests too that must be protected.”