US-Japan relations
![Image courtesy of Keith Allison via Wikimedia Commons](https://uscpublicdiplomacy.org/sites/default/files/styles/275x168/public/uploads/rsz_865px-ichiro_suzuki_on_may_11_2011.jpg?itok=TJtxjQ6G)
How an outfielder for the Seattle Mariners became a baseball ambassador.
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How a Japanese specialty plays an important role in public diplomacy between two nations.
As Korean scrambles to build diplomatic links from scratch with a Donald J. Trump administration, Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe moved swiftly to schedule a summit with the U.S. president-elect in New York next week. While Korean President Park Geun-hye spoke over the phone with Trump for about 10 minutes Thursday to reaffirm his support for the U.S.-Korea alliance, Abe and Trump held a 20-minute phone conversation and agreed to meet on Nov. 17.
![Elliott School of International Affairs](https://uscpublicdiplomacy.org/sites/default/files/styles/275x168/public/uploads/Screen%20Shot%202016-07-12%20at%209.13.09%20AM_0.png?itok=bQAB-1uB)
As official Washington prepares for the late April visit of Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and his scheduled address to a joint session of Congress, many aspects of the bilateral relationship between the United States and Japan will rightly be feted, including a robust strategic alliance and significant economic ties between the two nations.