Japanese Foreign Minister Takeshi Iwaya said Thursday he had told U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio that the imposition of tariffs on all steel and aluminum imports by President Donald Trump was "regrettable."

Shortly after their meeting in the small Canadian resort of La Malbaie, Quebec, Iwaya told reporters that he had asked Trump's administration to exempt Japan from planned auto and reciprocal tariffs.

Iwaya also said he had told Rubio that the two countries should further strengthen the bilateral alliance in line with Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba's agreement with Trump in February during their summit at the White House.

Iwaya met with Rubio on the sidelines of a Group of Seven foreign ministers' meeting. Iwaya quoted Rubio as saying the U.S.-Japan relationship is "extremely important" and he would convey Tokyo's concerns to Washington.

During their around 30-minute meeting, the third since Trump's nonconsecutive second term commenced in January, they also discussed issues related to Ukraine and the Gaza Strip, Iwaya said, without elaborating.

Among Trump's planned tariffs, targeting U.S. allies as well as rivals, Japan is particularly concerned about his proposed duties of around 25 percent on imported cars, up from the current 2.5 percent.

Along with reciprocal tariffs, targeting imports from all countries with matching duties, Trump has said the auto levies will be introduced on April 2, a move that would deal a severe blow to the Japanese car industry.

In 2024, Japan shipped about 1.37 million vehicles to the United States, accounting for 28.3 percent of its total exports to the world's largest economy in terms of value, according to official Japanese trade data.

Japan has no tariffs on imported cars, trucks or buses. But Trump has constantly carped that very few American cars are driven in Japan and many other countries.

Regarding Japan, Trump aides have claimed that American car brands are unpopular due to structural barriers, such as safety regulations.

Trump's steel and aluminum tariffs took effect on Wednesday. Two days earlier, Japanese trade minister Yoji Muto met with U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick and other senior officials in Washington but failed to secure assurances that the U.S. ally would be exempt from higher tariffs.

Iwaya's meeting with Rubio also came a week after Trump complained that his country's long-standing security treaty with Japan is one-sided, as he intensifies pressure on allies to boost their defense spending and buy more American products.

While speaking to reporters in the Oval Office on March 6, Trump said, "I love Japan. We have a great relationship with Japan, but we have an interesting deal with Japan that we have to protect them, but they don't have to protect us."

"That's the way the deal reads...and by the way, they make a fortune with us economically," he added.

On Thursday, Iwaya also held separate talks with his Canadian, British and Italian counterparts, agreeing with them to reinforce bilateral cooperation and work closely on key global issues, according to Japan's Foreign Ministry.