Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba said he agreed with Donald Trump in a conversation to “speed up” negotiations on a trade agreement following the US president's global tariff offensive.

The two leaders will meet face to face at the G7 summit, which begins on Sunday, June 15, in Canada, AFP reported.

He said that he and Trump had agreed by telephone to “speed up negotiations to reach an agreement that is beneficial to both Japan and the US.”

Japan, a key ally of the US and its largest investor, is subject to the same 10% base tariffs imposed on most countries, as well as higher tariffs on cars, steel, and aluminum.

Trump also announced an additional “reciprocal” tariff rate of 24% on Japan in early April, but later postponed it along with similar measures for other countries until early July.

Despite several rounds of negotiations, the two sides remain far from agreement, with Japan insisting that all tariffs announced by Trump must be removed.

Ishiba stressed that during the conversation with Trump, proposed by Tokyo, he reiterated that Japan's position remains “unchanged.”

Ryohei Akawa, Tokyo's trade envoy, said in Washington last week that some progress had been made during the fifth round of negotiations.

However, he added: “We have not yet been able to find a point of agreement.”

Ishiba said the G7 meeting would be a good opportunity for him and Trump to “deepen discussions on Japan-US relations.”

The two leaders also discussed Israel's attacks on Iran and confirmed that “peace and stability in the Middle East are extremely important.” | BGNES