Nikkei, Yomiuri, and Sankei wrote that senior Japanese and EU officials, including Trade Minister Seko and Foreign Minister Kono, convened a meeting in Tokyo yesterday and affirmed enhancing cooperation so as to effectuate the bilateral EPA swiftly in a bid to promote free trade with escalated trade friction between the U.S. and China in mind. The two sides also reaffirmed the importance of reforming the WTO to resurrect its dispute settlement mechanism. Nikkei explained that Tokyo and Brussels are keen to deepen their partnership out of a shared concern about the Trump administration’s “America First” trade policy and China’s “Belt and Road” initiative.