By J. Berkshire Miller
Tokyo has had a busy year reaching out to ASEAN countries. Will the effort continue in 2014?
This month, Japan’s Prime Minister Shinzo Abe finished up a busy year of diplomatic overtures in Asia with a summit hosting leaders from the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) in Tokyo. The Japan-ASEAN summit seemed a capstone moment aimed at cementing the ties made through Abe’s visit to all ten ASEAN countries this year. During the meeting, Abe pledged an additional $1.65 billion in overseas development assistance and investment loans to the region.
Tokyo also secured a lukewarm joint statement with ASEAN that praised Japan’s role and its “efforts in contributing constructively to peace, stability, and development in the region.” Despite a significant diplomatic effort however, Abe failed to get a more coveted rebuke from ASEAN on China’s recent imposition of a unilateral Air Defense Identification Zone (ADIZ) in the East China Sea. Instead, Japan settled for some platitudes about the freedom of navigation both in the air and in the seas. The lack of an ADIZ condemnation is not surprising as ASEAN remains divided on how much – if at all – it should prod China on its increasing assertiveness towards its regional neighbors.
Notwithstanding this divergence, Japan’s efforts to woo ASEAN have been accruing benefits for Tokyo as it looks for partners in Asia to check Beijing’s influence. This past year has seen several mini-victories for Tokyo in its attempts to reinvigorate its presence and influence in Southeast Asia. Ironically, two of these significant “wins” were achieved through a combination of Chinese miscalculation and opportunism by Japan. The first example was Typhoon Haiyan, which ravaged the Philippines in early November. While Beijing looked miserly and disingenuous in its response, Tokyo reacted with vigor and purpose, pledging more $50 million in assistance and deploying 1000 members of its Self Defense Forces to the area.
Read the full story at The Diplomat