US allies in region skip NATO event

Experts cite unease over Trump's defense spending demands, geopolitical tensions

The absence of leaders of Japan, South Korea and Australia at this week's NATO summit may have somehow reflected unease over the United States' demands on allies to increase defense spending, as well as strained trade ties and concerns over Middle East tensions, experts say.

Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba canceled plans to attend the NATO summit in The Hague on Tuesday and Wednesday, the Foreign Ministry in Tokyo announced on Monday.

Broadcaster Fuji Television said Ishiba canceled the trip partly because a meeting between NATO and four key US allies from the Asia-Pacific region — Japan, South Korea, Australia and New Zealand — was not likely to take place, and because a meeting with US President Donald Trump was also unlikely.