(MENAFN- Qatar News Agency) kyo April 21 - Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and US President Barack Obama will meet in Tokyo on Thursday. They're expected to discuss the Trans-Pacific Partnership free trade agreement and strengthening the bilateral alliance. Obama will arrive in Japan on Wednesday as a state guest according to Japan's (NHK WORLD) website. Obama will meet the Emperor and Empress at a ceremony at the Imperial Palace on Thursday. He will then meet Abe for talks and hold a joint news conference. Japanese and US officials will try to narrow the differences over the TPP before the summit. Both governments hope the summit meeting will produce some progress toward an early deal in the overall TPP negotiations. Abe wants to show that the Japan-US alliance remains strong and is contributing to regional stability and prosperity amid China's increased activities in the region. The US side is believed to be cautious about referring to the Senkaku Islands. Japan controls the islands. China and Taiwan claim them. The two sides are considering mentioning in the statement that they will not accept any attempts to change the status quo by force and to uphold the rule of law. Obama visited Japan in November 2010 for an APEC summit. This will be the first state visit by a US president to Japan in 18 years.
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