U.S. President Donald Trump (L) meets with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe at the White House in Washington D.C. April 26, 2019. (Xinhua/Ting Shen)
WASHINGTON, April 26 (Xinhua) -- U.S. President Donald Trump met with visiting Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe at White House on Friday to discuss bilateral trade and other issues.
Before his meeting with Abe, Trump told the press that trade negotiation between the two countries was underway, saying that it is "the primary reason that the prime minister is here."
Trump noted Washington and Tokyo have a chance to reach a long-term deal. The two leaders, however, disagreed on the tariff issue.
"Japan puts very massive tariffs on our agriculture ... and we want to get rid of those tariffs," said Trump.
In response, Abe claimed Japan puts no tariffs on U.S. automobiles while the United States puts 2.5-percent tariff on Japanese cars.
"We would like to proceed with the further negotiation that we are now having for that. We'll see a mutually beneficial outcome for both of our countries," Abe added.
