President Trump is scheduled to arrive soon in Japan, where new Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi is banking on building a friendly personal relationship with the U.S. leader to ease trade tensions.
The meeting is an early diplomatic test for Takaichi, the first woman to lead Japan. She took office only last week, and has a tenuous coalition backing her.
Mr. Trump spent Sunday in Malaysia, where he participated in a regional summit of Southeast Asian nations and reached preliminary trade agreements with Malaysia, Thailand, Cambodia and Vietnam.
While en route to Japan, he came back to the press cabin on Air Force One along with Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer.
Mr. Trump said he would talk about the "great friendship" between the U.S. and Japan during his visit.
"I hear phenomenal things" about the Takaichi, he said, noting her closeness with former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, with whom Mr. Trump had a good relationship during his first term.
"It's going to be very good," he said. "That really helps Japan and the United States."
Mr. Trump said he expected to reach a trade agreement with China.
Officials from the world's two largest economies said Sunday that they'd reached an initial consensus for Mr. Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping to try to finalize during a high-stakes meeting later in the week.
"I have a lot of respect for President Xi," Mr. Trump told reporters on Air Force One. "I think we're going to come away with a deal," Mr. Trump said.
