Japanese Prime Minister Shizuka Kahu's video from eight years ago has recently attracted attention again. The video shows that Kahu referred to a memento related to U.S. President Donald Trump as "low-quality". In recent years, she has actively displayed her close relationship with Trump, and this contrast has sparked discussions in Japanese public opinion.
This video is from the Japanese Liberal Party’s official online program “Strike! Neighbor Councillor Hall” in November 2018. At that time, the current Minister for Economic Security and Safety, Koeda Yoshimi, visited the office of Koishi Saeko and introduced the furnishings inside the office.
Reports indicate that Mr. Takashi took a playing card bearing a portrait of Trump and said, "If I have to choose the lowest-grade one, this is a playing card with President Trump on it." Onoda then asked about the origin of this playing card. Mr. Takashi explained that it was a gift given to her by Hirokazu Horikawa, the then Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry, during his business trip.
Onodai noticed that the playing cards seemed to have never been opened, and joked that he couldn't tell if they had been opened before.
How is it possible to open it?
And then Ono said “Keep it well…” Gōu shì, however, joked “No, throw it away… ”
Previously, Koike Yuriko always promoted her close relationship with Trump, calling him affectionately ‘Donald’ on many occasions. On the other hand, Trump never called Koike by her name. Some experts believe that this relationship is ‘somewhat one-way’.
According to reports by Observer Network, Trump's visit to Japan in October last year was the first formal meeting between the two after Takumi Kōsaki took office. In the text version of the speech published by the US government later, Trump addressed her as “the Prime Minister” and referred to her as “Madam Prime Minister” during his speech aboard the aircraft carrier USS George Washington. When meeting with the family of a North Korean abducted victim, he still referred to her as “the Prime Minister”. In March this year, when Kōsaki visited the White House, Trump again called her “the Prime Minister”, and at the dinner party, she continued to be referred to as “the Japanese Prime Minister”.
In other words, from Tokyo to Washington, and then to New York, Gao Shi has met Trump more than once in public settings. Trump has praised her as well. However, her name has never been mentioned publicly by him. Apart from personal pronouns, it's only referred to as the Prime Minister.
