AJISS-Commentary
The Association of Japanese Institutes of Strategic Studies
NPIRIPS

Nakasone Yasuhiro
Peace Institute

The Japan Institute ofInternational Affairs(Secretariat)

Research Institute for
Peace and Security

No. 304
4 August 2023

JAPAN’S POLICY TOWARD MATERIALIZINGCOOPERATION WITH THE GLOBAL SOUTH~REALIZING THE RULE OF LAW, RESOLVINGGLOBAL ISSUES AND STRENGTHENING
CONNECTIVITY~

Kunihiko Shinoda
・ In collaborating with emerging and developing countries inthe Global South, we should respect the principle of therule of law and promote dialogue and cooperation under
the concept of the Free and Open Indo-Pacific Partnership(FOIP), which in part represents Japan's commitment tothe Global South, with a focus on the Indo-Pacific.
・ As areas of cooperation with the Global South, emphasisshould be placed on: i) establishing principles for peaceand rules for prosperity; ii) addressing global issues suchas the environment, energy, food security, andinternational health; and iii) strengthening multilayered
connectivity, including infrastructure, institutions, humanexchange, and digital technologies.
・ Building on the cooperation with the Global Southdiscussed at the G7 Hiroshima Summit in May 2023,
further cooperation should be materialized at the East
Asia Summit, the G20 Summit, and the APEC Summit thatwill be hosted by major FOIP partner countries this year.
The views expressed in this piece are the author’s own and should not be
attributed to The Association of Japanese Institutes of Strategic Studies.

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The Association of Japanese Institutes of Strategic Studies

Importance of the Global SouthThe Global South is coming into the limelight. In January 2023, India as aleader among emerging economies hosted the “Voice of the Global South Summit”
attended by representatives from more than 120 countries, and strengthening
engagement with partners such as the Global South and the G20 was discussed as oneof the main topics at the G7 Hiroshima Summit in May 2023. The Global South is often
used as a generic term for non-aligned/neutral emerging and developing countries
located in Asia, Africa, Latin America, and the Middle East that are not classified aseither advanced democratic countries centered around the G7, or authoritarian
countries such as China and Russia. In terms of GDP, these countries accounted forabout 5% of the world economy in 2000, but their share increased to about 20% in 2020.
They are also similar in their pursuit of good diplomatic relations with both Westerncountries and China/Russia, and in their efforts to secure their own interests on acase-by-case basis.
Why are Japan and the developed Western countries seeking to strengthen
their ties with the Global South? First, on the political and security front, there is a need
to work with more partners in the international community to build a free and open
international order based on the rule of law in order to respond to Russia's invasion ofUkraine that began in 2022. Second, countries in the Global South are vulnerable withregard to issues such as climate change, energy security, food security, andinternational health, and solving these global issues through co-creation with the Global
South will lead to greater stability in the international order. Third, in terms of economics,
the countries of the Global South will develop into global production centers andconsumer markets in the future due to population growth and the emergence of a
middle class, and there is much room for economic growth together as developedcountries.

Direction of Cooperation with the Global South
What direction should we take in promoting cooperation with the Global South?
Japan and Western countries should encourage partner countries to becomeprosperous and secure, so that freedom and democracy can take root as a result. On
the other hand, the countries of the Global South have diverse values and historical andcultural backgrounds that sometimes lead to acceptance of authoritarian state ideas.
Rather than unilaterally imposing the values of developed countries, it is necessary topresent a way of thinking about the international order that is acceptable to all.

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The Association of Japanese Institutes of Strategic Studies

In March 2023, Japan launched a new plan for a “Free and Open Indo-PacificPartnership (FOIP)” in which it aims to lead the international community toward
cooperation rather than division and confrontation. The FOIP in part represents Japan'scommitment to the Global South, with a focus on the Indo-Pacific. It defends freedom
and the rule of law, stating that law is necessary for vulnerable countries and that theprinciples of the UN Charter should be upheld. It also states that it respects diversity,inclusiveness, and openness, does not exclude specific countries, does not create
camps, and does not impose its values on others. Based on these principles, theapproach to be taken in the future is to promote rule-making through dialogue, equal
partnerships among nations, and efforts focusing on people.

Japan's Strengths and Weaknesses
Japan's strengths in promoting dialogue and cooperation are that it has
participated in various forums in the international community, including the G7, the G20,APEC, the East Asia Summit, TICAD (Tokyo International Conference on AfricanDevelopment), and PALM (Pacific Islands Leaders Meeting), and that it has built trust
not only with developed countries but also with countries in the Global South. Japan has
continued to provide detailed support for infrastructure development, human resource
development, and institution building based on local needs from a standpoint of equality
with partner countries. In addition to government initiatives, Japanese industry has
formed broad supply chains, mainly in Western countries and Asia, and has beenworking to promote industry, develop human resources, and resolve social issues inother countries.
On the other hand, Japan's ODA budget for FY2023 is about half of its peak
FY1997 level, and its ODA in 2022 remained the world's third-largest after the US’s andGermany’s. Japan has high levels of government and industry involvement in the Global
South in regions such as Southeast Asia and South Asia, but relatively low levels inregions such as Africa, Central Asia, and South America. In addition, there is room forimprovement in the infrastructure, products, and services provided by Japaneseindustries and companies in terms of cost competitiveness and speed of implementation.
To address these issues, Japan should also strengthen its engagement with countries inthe Global South outside of Asia through top-level diplomacy at the summit andministerial levels. In addition, it should introduce offer-type ODA and mobilize
private-sector funds through revision of the Japan’s Development Cooperation Charter

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and other measures, and promote cooperation between Japanese companies andpartner companies in the Global South.

Specific Cooperation with the Global South
What specific cooperation with the Global South should be promoted? TheNew Plan for a Free and Open Indo-Pacific Partnership (FOIP) outlines a number ofspecific cooperation initiatives. This section will focus on the development of guidelines
for the rule of law and specific cooperation in the economic field.
The first is implementing the principles for peace and the rules for prosperity. In
order to realize peace in the international community, the principles stipulated in the UN
Charter, such as respect for sovereignty and territorial integrity and opposition tounilateral changes to the status quo by force, should be upheld. For example, the G7and ASEAN are engaged in dialogue to strengthen order through the rule of law, andefforts are being made to support human resource development and the establishmentof legal systems in developing countries. In addition, the developed countries aim toformulate high-standard rules through the CPTPP, IPEF, etc., while maintaining theWTO rules as a foundation in order to build a free, fair, and just economic order. To
involve the Global South in rule-making, it is necessary at the same time to improve
market access through trade liberalization and promote economic and technicalcooperation as in the CPTPP and RCEP. It is also vital to create rules that prevent
opaque and unfair practices, and Japan is advocating the implementation of the G20
Principles for Quality Infrastructure Investment in the field of development finance.
Furthermore, Japan is trying to strengthen cooperation among like-minded countries
against economic coercion by some authoritarian states to mitigate the damage and tocounter and deter such economic coercion.
The second is addressing the global issues that the Global South also faces.
With regard to climate, the environment, and energy security, countries in the Global
South are seeking to achieve both decarbonization and economic growth, and Japan is
supporting realistic energy transitions in Asia under the “Asia Zero EmissionCommunity” concept. In addition, Japan is providing assistance to cover losses anddamage to countries in the Indo-Pacific that are vulnerable to natural disasters causedby climate change. Food security is an important theme, as Russia's invasion of Ukraine
has caused food shortages and price hikes in developing countries. The Hiroshima
Action Statement for Resilient Global Food Security was launched at the G7 Hiroshima
Summit. In the area of global health, it is also important to pursue cooperation to

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The Association of Japanese Institutes of Strategic Studies

achieve universal health coverage and, in particular, Japan is trying to contribute toequitable access to medical countermeasures (MCM). Furthermore, to enhance theeconomic resilience of the region, efforts should be made to strengthen and diversify thesupply chains of critical goods and to ensure the safety of critical infrastructure.
The third is strengthening multi-layered connectivity. Connecting countries in
the Indo-Pacific region in a variety of areas, including physical and institutional
infrastructure, human exchange and digital technology, will lead to dynamic growth forthe entire region. Japan is supporting the enhancement of ASEAN connectivity
centering on land, sea, and air corridor connectivity projects, and encouraging humanresource development that will contribute to enhanced connectivity. It is also necessary
to promote the establishment of industrial value chains in the Bay of Bengal/Northeast
India in order to strengthen connectivity between Southeast Asia and South Asia.
Making integrated improvements to airports, ports, and communication infrastructure inPacific island countries will also be required. With regard to human exchange, Japanshould strive to upgrade “knowledge” connectivity, focusing on younger generations,
universities and research institutes, and start-ups. For greater digital connectivity, open
RAN (Radio Access Network), submarine cable installation/maintenance, Data Free
Flow with Trust (DFFT), and digital transformation (DX) in Asia should be fostered.

Diplomatic Development of Cooperation with the Global SouthJapan launched its New Plan for a “Free and Open Indo-Pacific (FOIP)” inMarch 2023, and held the G7 Hiroshima Summit in May 2023 to promote dialogue andcooperation not only with G7 members but also with other invited countries andinternational organizations, especially those from the Global South. Looking at thisyear's diplomatic schedule, the East Asia Summit (chaired by Indonesia) will be held in
September, the G20 New Delhi Summit (chaired by India) and the APEC Summit(chaired by the US) in November, and the ASEAN-Japan Commemorative Summit inDecember. Indonesia is a proponent of the ASEAN Outlook on the Indo-Pacific (AOIP)
and India and the US are Quad partners. This is an opportune time to develop
cooperation for the Global South based on a “Free and Open Indo-Pacific”.
While spreading the idea of upholding a free and open international order
based on the rule of law agreed to at the G7 Hiroshima Summit as a common thread,cooperation in solving specific global issues and strengthening multilayered connectivity
should be materialized. In particular, the G20 Summit in September that will feature theparticipation of major emerging and developing countries is expected to call for concrete

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The Association of Japanese Institutes of Strategic Studies

cooperation in areas such as development finance, SDGs, health, climate change,energy and food, while successfully coordinating the wording of the Leaders’
Declaration on Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. It is also hoped that the East Asia Summit
and the ASEAN-Japan Commemorative Summit will bring about AOIP cooperation,
reinforce ties between ASEAN and the Quad, and come up with a new vision forcooperation and broad concrete measures on the 50th anniversary of ASEAN-Japanfriendship and cooperation. The APEC Leaders’ Meeting is also expected to makeprogress on cooperation in the Asia-Pacific region in line with the priorities of being
interconnected, innovative, and inclusive. In addition, closer dialogue and cooperation
should be pursued in future under summit-level forums such as TICAD and PALM toconcretize cooperation with African and Pacific Island countries and countries
elsewhere in the broader Global South.

Kunihiko Shinoda is Professor at the National Graduate Institute for Policy Studies.

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