Trump Japan visit to focus on personal ties, not substance

President Donald Trump will be treated to an imperial banquet, a round of golf and a ringside view of a sumo match during his state visit to Japan as Prime Minister Shinzo Abe focuses on personal ties rather than substantive results on trade, security or North Korea.

The schedule for the U.S. leader this weekend is full of hospitality and entertainment. Trump and Abe will play a round of golf — their fifth — Sunday, joined by professional golfer Isao Aoki, whom the president has praised. Then the two leaders and their wives will watch sumo together in the evening before a restaurant dinner.

Trump and first lady Melania will be invited to a French dinner at the palace Monday hosted by Emperor Naruhito and his wife Masako, a Harvard-educated former diplomat. Trump will be the first foreign leader to be Naruhito's guest since his May 1 succession to the Chrysanthemum Throne.

FILE - In this May 12, 2019, file photo, banners thanking for a sellout crowd are displayed on the first day of Summer Grand Sumo Tournament in Tokyo. U.S. President Donald Trump’s Japan visit starting on Saturday, May 25, 2019, is to focus on personal ties with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe rather than substantive results on trade, security or North Korea. Then the two leaders and their wives will watch sumo together in the evening before a restaurant dinner. (Yoshitaka SugawaraKyodo News via AP, File)

Trump and Abe are to discuss trade, North Korea, security and possibly space cooperation at Monday's summit, but no significant outcome is expected and a joint statement may not be issued, Japanese officials said.

Trump's visit comes a month after Abe's trip to Washington and they will meet again in June when Japan hosts a Group of 20 summit in Osaka, the trio of meetings in three months underscoring a closer-than-ever relationship between the leaders.

"The main theme is building on the close personal ties between the two leaders to demonstrate the importance of the U.S.-Japan relationship, not only to the national interest of the two countries but to the region as a whole," said Nicholas Szechenyi, a Japan expert at the Center for Strategic and International Studies. "The symbolism behind this trip is all about suggesting that the U.S. is going to maintain its commitment to allies in Asia and its interest in Asia."

FILE - In this Nov. 6, 2017, file photo, U.S. President Donald Trump, second from left, reviews an honor guard during a welcome ceremony, escorted by Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe at Akasaka Palace in Tokyo. Trump’s Japan visit starting on Saturday, May 25, 2019, is to focus on personal ties with Abe rather than substantive results on trade, security or North Korea.(AP PhotoKoji Sasahara, Pool, File)

No major development is expected on trade as Abe doesn't want to take any risk ahead of a parliamentary election this summer, Japanese officials and ruling lawmakers say. The two leaders are expected not to focus on differences and reaffirm speeding up their talks despite uneasiness over Trump's threat to impose Section 232 national-security-based tariffs on Japanese autos.

U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer is expected to meet his Japanese counterpart, Economy Minister Toshimitsu Motegi, ahead of the summit.

The two sides will also discuss North Korea following its recent missile firings, a concern for Japan that Abe wants Trump to share, though those short-range missiles are not seen threats to America. They are also expected to discuss how Abe can have his own bilateral summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and discuss Japanese nationals abducted to the North decades ago. Trump, who has shown sympathy to the victims, will meet the abductees' relatives Monday.

FILE - In this Nov. 6, 2017, file photo, U.S. President Donald Trump, left, and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe feed carp before their working lunch at Akasaka Palace in Tokyo. Trump’s Japan visit starting on Saturday, May 25, 2019, is to focus on personal ties with Abe rather than substantive results on trade, security or North Korea. (Toru HanaiPool Photo via AP, File)

For Abe, the purpose of the summit also is "showing that nobody works better with this president or the United States than Japan," said Michael Green, senior vice president for Asia and Japan chair at the CSIS. That's an important signal to China and the region, as well as to Europe, Canada and other countries, he said.

After playing golf, Trump will watch sumo and present a trophy, dubbed "Trump Cup," to the winner Sunday, the final day of the 15-day Grand Sumo Tournament, becoming the first U.S. president to do so.

While Japanese officials say his presence at the sumo tournament will help promote Japanese culture, they will allow him to break sumo spectators' tradition. At the Kokugikan arena, Trump is to use a chair instead of sitting Japanese style on a "zabuton" mattress on the floor at "masu seki" box seats reserved for him near the ring. He may keep his shoes on and put plastic covers over them, in part due to security reasons, officials said.

A Japanese police checks garbage boxes at a terminal of Haneda airport in Tokyo Thursday, May 23, 2019, ahead of planned visit by U.S. President Donald Trump. Trump is scheduled to visit Japan from May 25 until May 28. (Mizuki IkariKyodo News via AP)

Hundreds of seats are set aside for Trump and Abe, and sales of canned beer or serving of tea pots and cups at box seats may be banned for safety. Officials have to watch out for stray mattresses hitting Trump since spectators customarily throw them to cheer a wrestler's victory against his senior opponent.

Officials, however, say there is no way to prepare for Trump tweeting or speaking of details not intended for disclosure. Trump last year said he was honored to be invited to a ceremony for the new emperor before Japan's government said anything about it. Earlier this year, Trump said Abe recommended him for the Nobel Peace Prize for his diplomatic effort with North Korea, though Abe has never clearly acknowledged making such a recommendation.

Follow Mari Yamaguchi on Twitter at https://www.twitter.com/mariyamaguchi

Japanese police check passersby near Haneda airport in Tokyo Thursday, May 23, 2019, ahead of planned visit by U.S. President Donald Trump. Trump is scheduled to visit Japan from May 25 until May 28. (Mizuki IkariKyodo News via AP)

DETROIT (AP) — The Oakland Athletics no longer have to wonder where they'll play the next few seasons. That won't make the long goodbye any easier.

The A's reacted to the announcement that this will be their last year in Oakland with a mixture of sadness and relief.

“At least as a player, you know where you’re headed,” outfielder Seth Brown said Friday before a game against the Tigers in Detroit. “There’s obviously a lot of moving parts, a lot of stuff we’re not privy to, so it’s just been kind of a waiting game on our end. Where are we going to go? Where are we going to be? So I think just having that knowledge -- at least we know where we’re going to be playing next year.”

Vivek Ranadivé, who owns the Triple-A Sacramento River Cats, and Oakland Athletics owner John Fisher announced Thursday that the A’s will temporarily relocate to West Sacramento's Sutter Health Park for at least three seasons. The A's are moving to Las Vegas after a new ballpark is constructed.

The River Cats, who are affiliated with the San Francisco Giants, will continue to play at the same facility.

Fisher was unable to reach an agreement with Oakland city officials on extending the lease at Oakland Coliseum, which expires at the end of this season. The A's have played in the city since 1968.

“There's direction now, which we've talked a lot about,” Oakland A's manager Mark Kotsay said. “We've got time to kind of reflect on what this really means from an organizational standpoint, the history that we've had in Oakland, with this being now the final season. There's a lot of emotion that goes behind this.”

It will not only cause some upheaval for the players and staff but also members of the organization that work behind the scenes.

“At the end of the day, we know where we're going to be for the next three seasons after the finish this year and that in itself gives a little bit of stability,” Kotsay said. “At the same time, in the present, it's challenging in certain ways to think about the finality of this organization in Oakland.”

Sacramento will be a much smaller environment to house a major league team. Ranadivé said the River Cats venue currently seats 16,000 when counting the stands, the lawn behind center field and standing room only.

First baseman Ryan Noda is concerned with the facilities. He's hopeful that significant upgrades will be made, much like the Toronto Blue Jays did at Buffalo's Triple-A facility. The Blue Jays played at Buffalo's Sahlen Field in 2020 in 2021 during the COVID-19 pandemic.

“New walls, new dugouts, new locker rooms — everything they needed to become a big league stadium,” said Noda, who played some games in Sacramento as a minor leaguer. “As long as we can do something like that, then it'll be all right. But it's definitely going to be different than playing in stadiums that hold 40,000 people.”

Kotsay is confident the upgrades will occur.

“I know it will be of major league baseball quality,” he said. “It's has to be of major league baseball quality. I know the Players Association will make sure that takes place, as they did in Buffalo.”

For the rest of this season, the A's will have to deal with small home crowds and disappointed fans.

“We’re sad for the fans, the diehard fans, who always come to our games, always support us, always support the boys wearing the jersey,” Noda said.

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Sacramento Kings owner Vivek Ranadive, center, shakes hands John Fisher, owner of the Oakland Athletics, before the start of a news conference where Fisher announced his team will leave Oakland after this season and play temporarily at a minor league park, during a news conference in West Sacramento, Calif., Thursday, April 4 2024.The A's announced the decision to play at the home of the Sacramento River Cats from 2025-27 with an option for 2028 on Thursday after being unable to reach an agreement to extend their lease in Oakland during that time. (AP Photo/Rich Pedroncelli)

John Fisher, owner of the Oakland Athletics baseball team, announces that his team will leave Oakland after this season and play temporarily at a minor league park, during a news conference in West Sacramento, Calif., Thursday, April 4, 2024. The A's announced the decision to play at the home of the Sacramento River Cats from 2025-27 with an option for 2028 on Thursday after being unable to reach an agreement to extend their lease in Oakland during that time. (AP Photo/Rich Pedroncelli)

Sutter Health Park, home of the Triple A team Sacramento River Cats, is shown in West Sacramento, Calif., Thursday, April 4, 2024. The Oakland Athletics announced the decision to play at the home of the Sacramento River Cats from 2025-27 with an option for 2028 on Thursday after being unable to reach an agreement to extend their lease in Oakland during that time. (AP Photo/Rich Pedroncelli)

Oakland Athletics manager Mark Kotsay walks to the dugout after making a pitching change during the eighth inning of the team's baseball game against the Cleveland Guardians in Oakland, Calif., Sunday, March 31, 2024. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu)