BBC: Trade Tensions Drive Japan, China Closer

The United States under Donald Trump has unleashed a protectionist agenda and that is pushing Asian economies closer together – including China and Japan, two bitter foes before and during World War II. “Tokyo and Beijing have long been at odds over past military confrontations and present territorial disputes,” reports BBC News, but now Asia’s two largest economies are aiming for more trade, regional stability and research cooperation including “a wider regional economic partnership and a special trade zone linking up China, Japan and South Korea.” Those three countries may also work to end their disagreement over how to handle North Korea and the security threat from its nuclear missile program. Trump and North Korea’s Kim Jong Un initiated dialogue and friendlier ties, but little in the way of denuclearization, in 2018.– YaleGlobal