It’s been obvious for some time now that Japan’s leadership is
moving toward removing the restriction that their post-World War II
constitution places on offensive military capability. What hasn’t
been so clear, however, is the extent of Japan’s ambition in
assuming a full political military role in Far Eastern affairs.
The administration of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has made an
effort to give less than subtle notice that it is taking an
independent, albeit not necessarily inconsistent, path as an
American partner in Asian political affairs and perhaps
globally.
Leading this charge is Foreign Minister Taro Aso, the tough
talking, Stanford-trained member of Abe’s cabinet. He has been
mentioned as a possible replacement for his boss if the latter’s
current poor standing with the public on domestic issues forces a
change.
F.M. Aso has spearheaded an effort to strengthen an informal
Asian security alliance linking the democratic nations of Japan,
United States, Australia and India. Expanding his interests to the
Middle East, Taro Aso was quoted the other week in the
Guardian that “Japan is doing what Americans can’t
do….Japanese are trusted. If you have blue eyes and blond hair,
it’s probably no good.”
While that comment may have lost something in translation, its
meaning appears rather clear, especially when one considers an
earlier statement of his. In defining the essential strength of his
homeland, Taro Aso referred to the uniqueness of Japan as “one
nation, one civilization, one language, one culture, one race, none
of which can be found in any other country.”
There is no question that the prime minister shares his
subordinate’s view, but what is even more disturbing is another
unfortunate choice of terms by Japan’s top diplomat. In an
interview with the Daily Yomiuri, the foreign minister
spoke of strengthening Japanese ties internationally beyond Asia by
defining “an arc of prosperity” that will connect emerging
democracies across the Eurasian continent. This was further
delineated in the newspaper as including Southeast Asia, Central
Asia, and Eastern Europe.
Combined with Taro Aso’s other certainly nationalistic and
perhaps even racist statements, one cannot ignore relating the
arc-of-prosperity terminology to the pre-1941 Japanese ambition to
create a “Greater East Asian Co-Prosperity Sphere.”
These quotes can be attacked as out of context, but other
governmental actions hold no such vulnerability. Prime Minister
Abe’s government, through his national security adviser, has made
it abundantly clear that it will not sign on to the current nuclear
negotiations with North Korea unless Pyongyang first resolves the
issue of North Korea’s kidnapping of Japanese nationals twenty to
thirty years ago.
Theoretically Japan and the DPRK were to hold separate
negotiations leading to normalizing relations. As part of the
overall agreement, Japan was also supposed to participate in the
provision of oil to the North Koreans to assist in solving the
latter’s energy shortage. Tokyo says it won’t budge unless
Pyongyang takes up the abduction issue.
Predictably North Korea has said that it doesn’t care whether or
not the Japanese come through with the oil. It would rather that
Japan address the issue of its longstanding exploitation of Korea
during the days of Japanese colonialism. All of which adds up to
Tokyo digging in its heels against an American-sponsored agreement
to solve the current impasse with the DPRK.
Whether it is the tangible contemporary matter of North Korean
nuclear development or the historical issues going back to World
War II, the Japanese appear to be demanding attention as a major
player in the world political and military scene. It also might be
construed effectively as a reminder to the United States that the
days of Japan’s unquestioning deference to American leadership in
the Pacific, and elsewhere, are over.
Meanwhile in a highly publicized statement in parliament last
week, Shinzo Abe repeated his personal apology as prime minister
for Japan’s drafting of thousands of young women — the majority
Korean — into military brothels during WWII. Again, however, he
calculatedly refused to offer an official governmental apology. The
nuance is telling.
Tokyo is signaling that it is not going to carry its defeat and
embarrassment of the 20th century over into the 21st. It may not
bother the Americans very much, but the Chinese, though not showing
it, will take strategic note of Japan’s newly displayed
self-importance.
