Japan seeks French backing as Macron begins Asia trip in Iran war’s shadow

Emmanuel Macron touches down in Tokyo this week with a packed agenda and a receptive audience in a Japanese government anxious about a choked oil route and looking for support amid its diplomatic falling-out with Beijing. The French president’s three-day visit, which begins Tuesday before he heads to South Korea later in the week, comes as Japan looks to Europe for solidarity amid a crisis in the Strait of Hormuz that has sent oil prices soaring. The backdrop to Macron’s meetings with Japanese...