WASHINGTON, DC — The USA Pavilion at Expo 2025 in Osaka, Japan, set the stage for a trade deal that was agreed upon just days after it hosted a delegation of cabinet officials sent by President Donald Trump, Ambassador William Grayson told Breitbart News in a sit-down interview.
As commissioner general of the pavilion, which in just a few months has attracted more than a million visitors with impressive displays of American culture and technology, Grayson highlighted how the venue aided the presidential delegation in meeting with Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba in July.
“It was an Ohtani Grand Slam, which the Japanese love,” the ambassador said Wednesday at the Department of State headquarters, referring to baseball star Shohei Ohtani.
The delegation was led by Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, and included U.S. Ambassador to Japan George Glass, Labor Secretary Lori Chavez-DeRemer, Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau, and others.
When the delegation visited Osaka to see the pavilion in person, they had a “very productive” meeting with Ishiba and trade negotiator Ryosei Akazawa, Grayson said.
“We were greeted exceptionally warmly,” Grayson said, adding that the conversations were “very warm, very cordial, very productive. And it’s no accident that three days later we had a trade deal.”
Photos shared by Ambassador Glass show the delegation meeting with Ishiba and other senior Japanese officials:
When asked if the meetings directly led to the key trade deal with Japan that Trump announced a few days later on July 22 to “create hundreds of thousands of jobs,” Grayson noted that there were “so many factors that went into it,” but the meetings were “highly additive” to the positive outcome.
Other high-profile visitors to the pavilion have included Princess Takamado of the Japanese Imperial Family, who toured the vast facility with Grayson:
“They’ve loved it,” the ambassador said when asked how the exhibit was received by members of Japan’s Imperial Family and government. “Everybody that’s come to the pavilion loves the art, they love the culture, they love the technology, the innovation, the freedom that we represent.”
Images and videos shared by the USA Pavilion’s social media team show crowds gathering to hear performances by American musicians and interacting with exhibits highlighting American space dominance:
“What we’re highlighting in the display is our American excellence in space, our great history in technology and space exploration,” Grayson said, before touching on the cultural aspects of the pavilion.
“We’re highlighting jazz, R&B, rock-and-roll, country, Western, rockabilly, classical music, you name it, we present it,” Grayson said, noting that the pavilion hosts five musical performances per day for visitors to enjoy. “And the crowds keep growing larger and larger because they want to experience and feel this American excellence, and use it in technology and culture.”
The pavilion opened at the world expo on April 13, and will continue running until October 13.
“I think we’re on track to easily surpass two million visitors. And remember, those are visitors that actually go through the exhibit,” Grayson explained, noting that “millions more” enjoy the performances on the outdoor stages and eat at the pavilion’s USA-themed restaurant.
The ambassador went on to say the relationship between the United States and Japan “is as strong as ever,” and that his success as commissioner general of the pavilion is a part of the Trump administration’s overall strategy to remain a partner in the Indo-Pacific region.
Olivia Rondeau is a politics reporter for Breitbart News based in Washington, DC. Find her on X/Twitter and Instagram.
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