Japan

Following former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s death, the pro-constitutional amendment camp retained a majority during the upper house election, marking a step forward for the revision of Japan’s post-war constitution. Nevertheless, Japan will still need to approach the matter with caution to avoid damaging the already delicate relations with the US and China. Zaobao associate editor Han Yong Hong shares more on the issue.

Political commentator William He observes that the late Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe was a statesman who influenced US foreign policy and a key player in making “the Indo-Pacific strategy” and “the Quad” the lexicon of recent times. He was also an active defender of stability in the Taiwan Strait. All said, he might have been a controversial figure, but the legacy he leaves behind is a tangible record that history can be the judge of.

With the upper house elections in Japan fast approaching, the various political parties are putting forward their platforms on key issues such as price hikes, foreign and security policy, and constitutional reform. Japanese academic Shin Kawashima examines the factors that will make a difference in how the votes will go, and whether the Kishida administration will manage to secure victory.

The recent NATO summit in Madrid seems to indicate that NATO is making a comeback in full force. For China, painted as presenting “systemic challenges” to NATO, this should sound a warning that when the time is ripe for the US to contain China, key countries in the Asia-Pacific and the EU will not be on its side.

US-led Western rhetoric has not been friendly to China, with “assertive” being the operative word. However, at the recent Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore, that term was “upgraded” to “aggressive”, prompting a strong response from China. Is this portrayal deserved and are tensions likely to persist in the region? What should the ASEAN countries’ response be?

Given the tough stand of Chinese Defence Minister Wei Fenghe at the previous Shangri-La Dialogue in 2019, and the current tense relations between China and the US, this week’s Shangri-La Dialogue is set to offer some sparks. Zaobao’s associate editor Han Yong Hong examines some points of contention and what previous rhetoric suggests.

Academic Zhu Ying notes that the war in Ukraine has brought the US, Japan and South Korea closer together on issues such as Taiwan and the nuclear threat from North Korea, thus strengthening the US’s strategy of working with alliances. In exchange for the US’s support in forms such as a nuclear umbrella, Japan and South Korea will align with the US in its competition with China.

US President Joe Biden's recent visit to Asia was made with China in mind, as he met with Quad partners South Korea, Japan, Australia and India, and launched the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework (IPEF). At the very least, says Japanese academic Ryo Sahashi, the visit signals that the US is keen on setting the rules in the region and keeping a firm security presence especially vis-à-vis the Taiwan Strait.

Following a video conference between the foreign ministers of Japan and China, each side's readout of the meeting seems to differ. While Japan's statement mentioned tough public opinion towards China and issues such as the East China Sea and the war in Ukraine, China's statement emphasised the 50th anniversary of the normalisation of diplomatic relations between China and Japan. Japanese academic Shin Kawashima explains the differences.