Japan should steer clear of protectionism and use its extraordinary wealth to stimulate its economy and become a much larger player in the global trading system, the head of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce said Friday in Tokyo.

Thomas Donohue, president and chief executive officer of the USCC, expressed alarm that increased protectionism in the face of the economic crisis will only drive the global economy further down.

"Through the end of 2009 we will start to come out of this," Donohue said of the recession during a speech at the Foreign Correspondents' Club of Japan, adding that Japan and the United States have a large role to play with their interdependent economies.