	japan u s will be at odds while  lopsided japan is doing all it can to solve its  problems with the united states but the two nations will remain at odds as long as the  account is lopsided in japan s favour a senior official said so long as there is an external imbalance there will be  friction and harsh words between the two governments the foreign ministry official told reporters last year japan racked up a billion dlr surplus with the united states and economists said they do not see it falling significantly any time soon washington announced plans last week to slap up to mln dlrs in tariffs on japanese electronic goods raising the spectre of a  war between the two countries we take the current situation very seriously said the official who declined to be identified the basic stance of the japanese government is to tackle the issues with all available resources the united states has accused japan of reneging on an agreement that called on it to stop selling cut price computer microchips in world markets and to try to import more american semiconductors tokyo has denied the charges the foreign ministry official refused to rule out japanese retaliation if america went ahead with its threatened tariffs in the middle of this month but he said that any response would be in accordance with international law and japan s international obligations he added that both japan and the united states must take account of the impact of their dispute on their own and the world economy reuter 
