Opposition Urges Ishiba to Talk with Trump over Tariffs

   Tokyo, April 3 (Jiji Press)--In the wake of U.S. President Donald Trump's announcement that he will slap reciprocal tariffs on imports from Japan, Japanese opposition parties on Thursday called on Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba to hold talks with Trump.
   "The U.S. action will cause great concern for the economy of Japan and the world," Kazuhiko Shigetoku, policy chief of the main opposition Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan, said at the day's meeting of the party's headquarters on Japan-U.S. trade issues, calling on the government to lay out Japan's stance to the U.S. leadership and negotiate hard.
   The CDP has demanded the adoption of a parliamentary resolution on the tariff issue.
   Seiji Maehara, co-leader of another major opposition party, Nippon Ishin no Kai (Japan Innovation Party), noted that Trump's additional levy of 25 pct on automobile imports is bound to affect the country's auto industry.
   At a press conference Thursday, Maehara urged the government to take every possible measures, such as offering emergency loans to affected businesses.

(2025/04/03-18:58)