: Yoshihide Suga Is Japan’s New Prime Minister. Here’s What That Means for the U.S. #WorldNEWS As Japans new prime minister, Yoshihide Suga, takes the reins of the worlds third-largest economy this

Yoshihide Suga Is Japan’s New Prime Minister. Here’s What That Means for the U.S. #WorldNEWS
As Japans new prime minister, Yoshihide Suga, takes the reins of the worlds third-largest economy this week, he inherits a domestic agenda swamped by the coronavirus pandemic, the countrys biggest economic slump on record and the postponed Tokyo Olympics.
The leader of one of Americas closest allies also steps into a tense geopolitical climate amid rapidly deteriorating U. S. -China relations. Yet experts say this new premier is largely untested in the foreign policy arena.
Suga is more domestically-oriented and several questions have been raised about his propensity to deal with foreign relations and international issues, says Donna Weeks, professor of political science at Musashino University in Tokyo.

Suga takes over from the countrys longest-serving prime minister, 65-year-old Shinzo Abe, who resigned due to health reasons.
Abe, who became an internationally recognizable statesman during his second tenure as prime minister, made wooing President Donald Trump a top priority. He was the first foreign leader to meet Trump after the 2016 election, and invited Trump to be the first foreign leader to meet Japans new emperor in 2019.
During Trumps 2019 visit to Japan, Abes pandering made headlines. They played a round of golf (stopping to take a smiling selfie in between holes), ate a hamburger lunch, sat at ringside seats at a sumo competition and then tucked into a Japanese barbecue dinner.

PM Abe: Playing golf in Chiba with President Trump (@realdonaldtrump), who is visiting Japan as the first state guest in the era of Reiwa. We hope to further solidify the Japan-US alliance in the new era of Reiwa. pic. twitter. com/CsJFkAAkWr
— PMs Office of Japan (@JPN_PMO) May 26, 2019

When Abe announced in late August that he was stepping down, Trump was quick to comment on Twitter. He called Abe the greatest Prime Minister in the history of Japan, adding that Japans relationship with the USA is the best it has ever been.
That begs the question: what will a new prime minister mean for U. S. -Japan relations?
A shift from personal politics
Trumps foreign policy has often been defined by his personal relationships with world leaders, and Abe appears to have fostered among the closest ties to the volatile American President.
Suga, Abes longtime chief cabinet secretary, is largely expected to follow in his predecessors footsteps when it comes to foreign policy. But he may not be able to replicate the Trump-Abe bromance, not least because he admits he lacks the diplomatic skills.
“Prime Minister Abe’s leadership diplomacy was truly amazing. I don’t think I can match that,” Suga said on Sept. 12, adding that he will continue to consult with Abe on foreign relations.