Reinforcing the Japanese-American Alliance

The Japanese Overseas Chinese [JNOCNews.jp] recently published an article entitled “The reinforcement of the Japanese-American alliance and its respective relations with China” in its Jan. 26 issue. The article said that globalization, especially in the economic sector, has prompted competition as well as cooperation among nations, resulting in a global climate that is quite different from the black-or-white times of the Cold War. A tendency toward multi-polarization means countries will need to expand their list of important diplomatic relations. As they increase their national interests across the globe, these countries must consider “balancing” their many relations. In such a climate, the reinforcement of the Japanese-American alliance thus has novel characteristics, one of the most significant being its relations with China; the climate calls for further cooperation with China in addition to reinforcement of the alliance itself.

Excerpts from the said article are as follows:

Jan. 19 was the 50th anniversary of the Treaty of Mutual Cooperation and Security between the United States and Japan. Around the 19th, Japanese and U.S. political leaders expressed their wish to “reinforce” the Japanese-American alliance; they hosted speeches, released a joint declaration and held memorial activities and a symposium. But from what they have revealed in the above occasions, the “reinforcement” of the Japanese-American alliance closely concerns relations with China.

First of all, both countries restated the importance of the alliance, partly for the intention of establishing preemption strategies against China.

U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton pointed out that the Japanese-American alliance has been the most successful bilateral partnership in history, and is the “cornerstone” for the stability of the whole Asia-Pacific region. Japanese Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama stressed, in his own words, that “for Japan, which has declared not to acquire nuclear weapons nor to become a military power, the deterrence provided by the U.S. Forces based on the U.S.-Japan security arrangements, together with Japan's Self Defense Forces, serves, and will continue to serve, an essential role in the foreseeable future to maintain Japan's peace and security.”

Mr. Hatoyama also said that “the presence of the U.S. Forces based on the treaty will continue to function as a public good by creating a strong sense of security to the countries in the region,” suggesting that the restatements from both countries were mainly prompted by security concerns.

During the Bush administration, the United States once proposed four security-related “core issues” that it needed to settle: to establish partnerships with other nations in the fight against terrorism and other domestic threats; to protect U.S. national security; to stop the utilization and distribution of weapons of mass destruction; and to impact the choices of countries like China and Russia, who are now at “strategic crossroads.” No signs indicate that the United States has given up these initiatives. Apparently, reinforcement of the Japanese-American alliance involves intentions to establish preemption strategies against China.

Aside from restating the importance of the alliance, officials from both Japan and the United States spoke of seeking more cooperation with China. Mrs. Clinton said that the U.S. would strengthen bilateral ties with China, India and other important nations in the region. In a joint declaration, Japanese Foreign Minister Okada Katsuya and Secretary hoped for a “positive, cooperative, and comprehensive relationship with China.”

President Barack Obama once said, “America cannot meet the threats of this century alone.” The above reactions to the United States’ alliance with the Japanese exemplify the key judgment his administration has made in this time of economic crisis. America needs to establish more extensive partnerships in security and trade in the Asia-Pacific region, as Asian countries like China gradually rise to power. The Hatoyama Cabinet also needs to recognize the multi-polarization trend in order to have different diplomatic options and to maintain and develop Japanese national interests. Naturally, Japan seeks to balance its relations with China and the United States.

Akihisa Nagashima, Japanese parliamentary secretary of defense, explained the complexity of Japan and the United States’ attitudes toward China quite frankly, “China is not the Soviet Union in the Cold War. While there are areas in which we can block it out, when it comes to trade we have to deal with the Chinese market. It is a predicament.”

We may conclude that globalization has prompted competition and cooperation among nations, which is quite different from the friend-or-foe times of the Cold War. Multi-polarization has expanded the number of important diplomatic partners for every country, as well as varied its national interests. Governments now must seek to “balance” their diplomatic ties. The reinforcement of the Japanese-American alliance thus bears new characteristics. More concern for relations with China is one of them.