On August 1, the United States and Japan carried out a rare joint currency intervention to defend the yen, the first time the two governments bought yen together since 2011. The move came after the yen slid to about 163.7 per dollar, its weakest in roughly four decades, before the intervention pushed it back to around 155.
Why Washington Joined In
President Donald Trump described the intervention as a gesture of goodwill, not a policy shift. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent confirmed that the US bought yen alongside Japan's Ministry of Finance, adding that Washington supports Tokyo's view that the yen is undervalued. The last time the US intervened on the yen's behalf was in 1998.
The joint action signals a degree of coordination between the two allies on currency markets, even as Trump's own trade and tariff policies have at times rattled global markets. Bessent's statement was notable for its directness: the US not only participated but endorsed Japan's assessment of its currency's weakness.
The Copyright Complaint That Won't Go Away
While the currency move drew attention, a separate and more awkward dispute between the two governments has been simmering for months. Japan's Foreign Ministry has complained that the US government uses Nintendo, Pokémon, and Naruto characters in social media memes without permission, including in military-related content. Tokyo argues that rights holders' consent matters regardless of who is posting, and that it's inappropriate even for public institutions to use these characters without authorization.
The complaints have been raised through diplomatic channels since March. Japan specifically cited a White House post that used Nintendo Wii imagery in connection with strikes in Iran. The Pokémon Company has denied granting permission for its characters to appear in government content, and the issue has drawn attention from Japanese lawmakers and a fan-led petition.
A Test of Whether Cooperation Extends Beyond Currency
The yen intervention shows the two governments can work together on a sensitive economic issue. But the copyright dispute remains unresolved, and it's unclear whether the spirit of cooperation will carry over to intellectual property. Neither government has indicated that the currency talks touched on the meme controversy, and Japan has not backed down from its position that the US must stop using the characters without permission.
The question now is whether the same diplomatic channels that produced a joint yen-buying operation can also produce a resolution to the anime meme fight. So far, there's no sign that they have.
