Takaichi's plan to make her first visit to the United States since taking office in October, confirmed during their phone call, comes at a time of strained relations between Japan and China, and ahead of Trump's possible trip to Beijing in April to meet with Chinese President Xi Jinping.

"At the start of the new year, I consider it extremely significant that I was able to exchange words directly with President Trump and confirm the strong partnership of the Japan-US alliance," Takaichi told reporters following the call.

Takaichi said she and Trump agreed to promote a free and open Indo-Pacific as well as cooperation among like-minded countries, including in the three-way partnership also involving South Korea.

She said their discussion was mainly about the region, without elaborating as to whether it had anything to do with China specifically.

According to Japan's Foreign Ministry, the conversation lasted about 25 minutes, during which Trump, who met with Takaichi in October in Tokyo, invited her to visit the US.

In late December, Takaichi said she was exploring a visit to the US for another meeting with Trump early in the upcoming year, with Japanese officials proposing late March for her trip to Washington.

Late on Friday night, Takaichi said she had conveyed her congratulations to Trump on the US marking in 2026 the 250^th anniversary of its independence.

She said they agreed this year should also be one that opens a "new chapter in the history of the Japan-US alliance" and that they will further deepen the wide-ranging cooperation and friendly relations between the two countries.

If all goes smoothly, Takaichi's upcoming trip will coincide with the US capital's well-known annual cherry blossom festival.

The festival commemorates the 1912 gift of cherry trees from Tokyo to Washington and the longtime friendship between Japan and the US.

When Takaichi hosted Trump in Japan in late October, the two leaders affirmed their intention to jointly celebrate the 250^th anniversary, and she confirmed Japan's promise to give 250 cherry trees to the US.

Takaichi and Trump last spoke by phone on Nov. 25, with the conversation taking place after his call with Xi and amid escalating tensions between Tokyo and Beijing over Taiwan.

China has been taking a hard-line stance against Japan since Takaichi suggested earlier that month that an attack on Taiwan could constitute an existential threat to Japan and warrant a response from its forces.

Trump, who also met with Xi in late October during his trip to Asia, has not made his position public on the ongoing tensions between Japan and China, which views Taiwan as its own territory and has not ruled out the use of force to bring the self-ruled island under its control.

Trump has repeatedly said he has good relationships with both Takaichi and Xi.

Unlike previous US presidents, Trump, who has voiced hope to visit China in April and prioritized economic negotiations with Xi, has not spoken much about issues that are considered politically delicate by Beijing, such as Taiwan.

In his previous phone conversation with Takaichi, Trump suggested to her that it is necessary to "manage" Japan's relations with China, a Japanese government source has said.

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