QUESTION ASKED: Did Trump and Abe just launch a new chapter in U.S.-Japan relations?

Trump’s meeting with Abe struck a different chord. After their Washington meeting last week, the two leaders issued a joint statement to reaffirm their “unshakeable alliance.” Trump also displayed his affection for Abe during a joint news conference, stating, “I shook hands, but I grabbed him and hugged him because that’s the way we feel. We have a very, very good bond — very, very good chemistry.” And responding to North Korea’s missile test early Sunday, Trump stood by Abe and declared that the United States was behind “our great ally, 100 percent.”

Abe, a calm and collected politician, has been intentional and strategic in his outreach to the new U.S. president. Shortly after the November election, Abe met with the president-elect at Trump Towers to “build trust” and seek clarification on the future of the U.S.-Japan alliance.

During his campaign, Trump called Japan a currency manipulator and accused Japan of free-riding on the U.S. security regime in Asia. And the decision to abandon the Trans-Pacific Partnership came as a blow to Abe, in particular. The trade pact would have linked the United States with Japan and 10 other nations, and Abe had invested significant political capital to move the agreement forward.

Despite these hurdles, the Trump-Abe relationship seems to be on sound footing.

Trump’s election posturing on Japan seems to have been just that — posturing. The same may be proving true of his pre-swearing-in statements which nearly threatened the NATO alliance.

That aside, Trump and Abe seem to be not so much launching “a new chapter in U.S.-Japan relations,” but instead returning to the postwar norm after an eight-year interregnum.