Though President Donald Trump was tentatively scheduled to play golf with Japanese Prime Minster Shinzo Abe at his private course in Bedminster, New Jersey, this weekend, the White House says that is no longer being discussed.
White House press secretary Sarah Sanders told CNN Tuesday Trump is no longer expected to host Abe at all. They had been scheduled to hit the links together Sunday at the Trump National Golf Club, CNN had learned earlier Tuesday, though a person familiar with the meeting cautioned that had not been set in stone.
Abe will be in the United States for the UN General Assembly, which takes place in New York City next week.
It wouldn’t have been the first time Trump welcomed Abe to one of his properties.
In February, he hosted the prime minster at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Palm Beach, Florida, where the two men spent the weekend getting to know each other while golfing and touring the grounds. They were forced to hold a late-night news conference after North Korea launched a ballistic missile during the visit.
“I just want everybody to understand and fully know that the United States of America stands behind Japan, its great ally, 100%,” Trump said at the time.
Trump later added that he and Abe had a “very, very good” visit and “got to know each other very, very well.”
Trump and Abe have been in near constant communication lately as the rogue regime has ratcheted up the talk of nuclear war by continuing with missile tests, despite warnings by both countries.
The two leaders most recently spoke during a three-way call with French President Emmanuel Macron on September 9, when they discussed the possibility of further sanctions against North Korea, according to the Elysee Palace.
Trump and Abe spoke a few days earlier on September 3 after North Korea claimed it had successfully tested a hydrogen bomb. The two men “condemned North Korea’s continued destabilizing and provocative actions, confirmed the two countries’ ironclad mutual defense commitments, and pledged to continue close cooperation,” the White House said in a readout of the call provided to reporters.
Approximately 24 hours before that, they discussed ongoing efforts “to maximize pressure on North Korea” during a call where, the White House noted, Trump and Abe reaffirmed the importance of close cooperation between the United States, Japan, and South Korea.
At the end of August, Trump and Abe spoke two more times to hash out issues regarding North Korea.
