By David Brunnstrom, Simon Lewis, Trevor Hunnicutt and Tim Kelly TOKYO/WASHINGTON (Reuters) -The foreign ministers of Japan and the United States said their countries' ties were stronger than ever on Tuesday,

Japan's prime minister on Monday urged Washington to dispel concerns that a decision by Joe Biden to block Nippon Steel's takeover of US Steel could impact future investments. Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba said the veteran Democrat's decision had sparked worries over future Japanese investments in the world's largest economy.

The president said he was moving to protect national security in deciding the fate of the iconic Pennsylvania-based company, which became a contentious political issue in an election year.

Secretary of State Antony Blinken lauded the close economic and security partnership between the US and Japan after a controversial move by US President Joe Biden to label Japan’s Nippon Steel Corp. as a national security risk.

Reportedly, Nippon Steel is set to file a lawsuit in response to United States President Joe Biden blocking the Japanese company's $14.1 billion takeover of US Steel.

President Joe Biden has rejected the nearly $15 billion proposed deal for Nippon Steel of Japan to purchase Pittsburgh-based U.S. Steel.

Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) argued President Biden is selling out to Big Labor by blocking the sale of U.S. Steel to Japanese-owned Nippon Steel. “The Biden administration will leave America’s core economic and national-security interests less secure than it found them,

Citing national security concerns, President Joe Biden blocked the $15 billion international sale of U.S. Steel to Japanese company Nippon Steel on Jan. 3, 2025. In a joint statement after the announcement U.