germany's chancellor angela merkel is in the japanese cattle of tokyo, meeting with japanese prime ministers shinzo abe. in a joint news conference, both leaders stressed the importance of close trade ties in times of rising protectionism. merkel's visit comes three days after a sprawling trade pact between the european union and japan took affect. reporter: good friends are important, especially in hard times. that is winter -- that is what german chancellor angela merkel emphasizing during her visit to japan, a major ally in her call for free trade. their relationship is about more than trade. >> i am in japan for the fifth time. we have met 17 times already. we have always worked well together, even at international conferences. we have a long f friendship with 2021 marking 160 years of diplomatic relations for us. it is an incentive for us to work even more closely than --