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

RIPSInstitute for International

The Japan Institute ofResearch Institute for

Policy Studies

International Affairs

Peace and Security

Editorial Advisory Board:

No. 201

Akio Watanabe (Chair)
Masashi Nishihara
Yoshiji Nogami
Taizo Yakushiji

1 August 2014

Editorial Committee:

WHAT THE US NOW CRAVES FROMJAPANTaizo Yakushiji
Hisayoshi Ina
Tsutomu Kikuchi
Shujiro Urata andToshiro Iijima
Editor & Online Publisher:

Keiko Iizuka

Yoshji Nogami
President, JIIAAs Russia’s President Putin keeps stirring up
anxieties, the downing of Malaysia Airlines FlightMH17 on July 17 has brought about a significant
sea change in European opinion. Germany andFrance are moving closer to the United States andtaking concerted action vis-à-vis Russia.

The views expressed in this piece are the author’s own and should
not be attributed to The Association of Japanese Institutes ofStrategic Studies.

AJISS-Commentary
The Association of Japanese Institutes of Strategic Studies

Until then, President Obama had not been able to fully unite major
European powers behind the US in imposing tougher sanctions against Russia.
The G7 Summit held in Brussels on June 4 and 5 did not yield him Germany andFrance’s full support. Indeed, it required 298 lives, more than two-thirds fromEurope, in order to change the minds of Europeans and convince them to standup and confront Russia.
Ahead of the G7 Summit, President Obama visited Poland, where heemphasized a policy of strengthening US engagement in talks with leaders ofEastern European countries seriously concerned about the threat of Russia.
This was reminiscent of his April visit to Japan, South Korea, and otherdestinations in Asia, where the actions of an increasingly assertive China arecasting a shadow on the region.
In a mere month and a half Obama called on major allies in Asia andEurope and met with their leaders. The key aim in all of these meetings was toreassure these allies by reaffirming the US’ commitment to their defense.
China in Asia and Russia in Europe have been threatening thesovereignty of territorial lands and seas and destabilizing the international order,and US allies have become deeply concerned about US engagement. Obama
has verbally pledged US commitment in a number of summit meetings andspeeches, but the troops, equipment, and financial resources available to him
are limited, making it difficult to reinforce the US’ two-front posture in Asia andEurope.
The April 24 Japan-US summit meeting held against this backdrop saw
the two parties pursuing mixed agendas.
The two main topics discussed in the meeting between Prime Minister
Abe and President Obama were the future of the Japan-US alliance in the faceof China’ military rise and the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP).
Obama positively stated that the Senkaku Islands in Okinawa Prefecture
were covered under Article 5 of the Japan-US Security Treaty stipulating USobligations in the defense of Japan. Such a pronouncement by the US president
himself had long been awaited in Japan.

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AJISS-Commentary
The Association of Japanese Institutes of Strategic Studies

Extended talks between the US and Japan on TPP were held after thesummit. A joint statement released the next day (April 25) claimed “we haveidentified a path forward on important bilateral TPP issues.”
Based on reliable information, the Yomiuri Shimbun reported that Japanand the United States had reached a “basic agreement” after discussions on
topics including the key five categories of agricultural products (e.g., beef, porkand rice) as well as safety standards on vehicles, but neither government offered
any specifics publicly.
This outcome drew quite a few criticisms immediately after the meetingfrom the Washington policy community, protesting that the president had given
Japan everything on security but received nothing from Japan on trade.
The reasoning here is that security and trade should be considered apackage deal with Japan and that, if Japan was unwilling to compromise on beef
tariffs and other trade issues, the president himself had no need to go on record
regarding the defense of the Senkaku Islands.
However, this assertion misreads what the Obama administration isactually seeking from Japan now. The international circumstances making theUS most nervous at the moment merit a closer look.
What the US wants most now is for Japan to stand with the US on its
policy toward Russia. Since Russias annexation of Crimea in March, the Obamaadministration has worked to isolate Russia from the international community,and has called on Europe and Japan to join it in implementing sanctions.
Although the recent G7 Leaders’ Communique had strong words ofcriticism for Russia, imploring the G7 members to unite in denunciation of thecontinued infringement of Ukrainian sovereignty and territory and to step up
sanctions if necessary, Europe was in fact ambivalent about additional sanctions.
It was not until the shootdown of MH17 that Europe moved closer to the US line.
This meant that strong support from Japan for the US position took on evenmore significance.
Japan’s Prime Minister Abe, however, is hoping to bolster energy
development and other economic cooperation with Russia and make progress

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AJISS-Commentary
The Association of Japanese Institutes of Strategic Studies

on the Northern Territories issue, so he appears to be leaving room for his own
diplomacy with President Putin.
A variety of behind-the-scenes exchanges have taken place between
Japan and the US since the summit. When Japan has expressed concern thatpressuring Russia too much could push it closer to China, the US has counteredby insisting that genuine collaboration between China and Russia is hardly
possible. When Japan has asked the US for an “exit strategy” on the Russia
issue, the US has responded by asking Japan for an “exit strategy” on the Chinaissue.
In other words, the US does not see its current relations with Japan as a“security and trade” bundle, but rather as a “China and Russia” package deal.
Just as Japan is monitoring US reaction on both Crimea and the Senkakus, theUS is seeking a concrete response from Japan on both China and Russia.
These are quite odd patterns in the history of Japan-US relations.
On this basis alone, it could be said that the US’ power is waning andJapan’s significance is growing, but the Japan-US alliance still very muchremains the foundation of Japan’s foreign policy. The Abe administration must
firmly pursue policies toward Russia and China without harming this foundation.
Sophisticated and well-thought-out diplomatic tactics will no doubt
become essential for such a long-lived administration as this one. Japan is now
in an era of developing its own long-term security strategy after nearly a decadeof weak and short-lived leadership, so it needs all the more to be both bold andcareful, especially when coordinating with the US.

Keiko Iizuka is Washington Bureau Chief for the Yomiuri Shimbun, one ofJapan’s leading daily newspapers. She earned her bachelor’s degree from Sophia
University in Tokyo, and her master’s degree in international security from Fletcher
School of Law and Diplomacy in Medford, Massachusetts (US). She has served as
Yomiuri’s Deputy Political Editor, Chief Correspondent at Japan's Prime Minister’sOffice, and Editorial Writer, and she was formerly a correspondent in Okinawa andLondon. She was a Visiting Fellow at The Brookings Institution in 2008-09.
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