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By Edward Vickers and Tim Summers
The U.K. should respond cautiously to calls for stronger ties with Japan.
Recent tensions in East Asia have led to debates across the region about strategic relationships with both China and Japan. There has been little similar debate in Europe, but some are calling for the U.K. to engage in greater security cooperation with Japan.
Given the U.K.’s reduced military capacity and its commitments elsewhere, an enhanced security relationship would have little material impact, but would be politically symbolic in the region. This is precisely why Britain should respond cautiously, in spite of the long-standing close ties between London and Tokyo.
Arguments for strengthening the U.K.-Japan relationship range from claims of shared political values, the potential for collaboration in military technology or the coordination of overseas development assistance, and the existence of shared security challenges. For some in Japan, the recent execution of Japanese hostages by the Islamic State has reinforced the case for a more assertive and outward-looking security policy. Others invoke memories of the 1902 Anglo-Japanese Alliance, and a sentimental affinity between these two island kingdoms.
Some also point to a limited window of opportunity for enhancing U.K.-Japan security cooperation, arguing that Japanese openness to this may not outlast the current government of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe.
Read the full story at The Diplomat