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Prime Minister of Japan Sanae Takaichi meets with President Donald Trump as Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio look on during a bilateral meeting in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, on March 19, 2026. Alex Wong/Getty Images
For decades, many Japanese companies followed seikei bunri—the separation of politics and economics. This allowed them to depend on the U.S.–Japan security alliance for defense while building deep economic ties with China, including extensive supply chains, factories, and market growth on the mainland.
