Emerging Features in US-Japan Relations

As U.S. strategic thinking gradually matures, it is increasingly responding to major global trends with the aim of shaping a new international system; calls for a more flexible China policy are also on the rise.

The U.S. sees China as its main competitor and partner in the new international system; as it uses Japanese support in launching its new strategy, U.S.-Japanese relations will become more unstable.

In President Obama’s second term, new features are appearing in the global strategy of the U.S., the core of which is a rebalancing of its strategy toward the Asia-Pacific region.

First, the U.S. is paying more attention to overall strategic deployment in safeguarding its strategic priorities. Previously, the U.S. was more focused on beefing up its strength in the Asia-Pacific region, whereas now it gives more consideration to each country’s status, role and development prospects, as well as mutual influence and support. Of particular interest was the increased attention on leveraging the transatlantic partnership. The Atlantic Council, an important U.S. think tank, emphasizes, “America’s transatlantic alliance continues to be the core of our foreign and economic policies” and should be “a key pillar of U.S. strategy in Eurasia and beyond.”*

Secondly, it is focusing more on reshaping the international economic order. Economic globalization has created a dispersion of economic power beyond the control of the West; the multipolarization of the world stems directly from this. Dominance in the international economic order is the foundation of U.S. dominance in foreign policy, security and other areas; reshaping the international system necessarily requires reshaping the international economic order. For this reason, the U.S. has urged Japan to join its Trans-Pacific Strategic Economic Partnership Agreement; at the same time, it has formally begun negotiations with the EU over a Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership Agreement. Through these initiatives, the U.S. is attempting to improve its economic dynamism and competitiveness, as well as help itself and other wealthy countries re-establish their dominant position in the international economic order from a new starting point.

Thirdly, the U.S. is demonstrating increased flexibility in its policy toward China. The basic motivation for the Asia-Pacific rebalancing strategy is the worry that China’s rise will upset the Asia-Pacific strategic balance, resulting in the loss of U.S. dominance in the region. For this reason, when the strategy was first put forward, the intention of containing China was glaringly conspicuous and met with vehement protest from China. For Washington and Beijing, mutual distrust and accusations were reaching disquieting levels. At the same time, as U.S. strategic thinking gradually matures, becoming more grounded in global trends and aimed toward reshaping the international system, the U.S. is reconsidering its Asia-Pacific rebalancing strategy and China policy. With this backdrop, there have been increasing calls for a more flexible China policy arising from all levels of the U.S. government. Newly appointed Secretary of State John Kerry expressed that the U.S. “wants a strong, normal, but special relationship with China … because China is a great power with a great ability to affect events in the world. And we need to work together to do that.”

As part of the U.S.’ readjustment of its world strategy, new features are emerging in its relationship with Japan, mainly:

1. Previously, U.S. strategy was founded on using Japan to counterbalance Chinese power in the Asia-Pacific region, whereas now it has a broader outlook and is focused on using Japan to reshape the international system.

2. The U.S. will take a greater interest in Japanese economic recovery and the degree of Japan’s cooperation in reshaping the international economic order.

3. Because the U.S. sees China as both its main competitor and partner in building a new international system while Japan provides much of the weight behind the U.S.’ revised strategy, U.S.-Japanese relations will become more unstable.

Recognizing and understanding these new features will be important to managing Sino-Japanese relations.

The author of this article is Director of the Center for Japanese Studies at Shanghai Jiao Tong University.

*Editor’s Note: This quote, while accurately translated, could not be verified.