Busy on all fronts

Busy on all fronts

Japan asserts its value as a political, security and economic partner with Asean as China starts opening the spending tap to the region.

Japan has high hopes that its Asean partners are ready to embrace its self-conviction as a trend-setter for the rule of law as Tokyo begins to assert itself more confidently in the regional and global debate.

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has never hidden his desire to restore Japan's stature in the global arena. But the drive to redefine the role of the country's self-defence forces is not just a recent issue that has arisen from the dispute over the Senkaku (or Daioyu, as China calls them) islands in the East China Sea. The policy can be traced back to 1998 when North Korea launched its first Taepodong missile, which made Tokyo realise hat it needed to do more in the face of an uncertain and mostly unfriendly strategic environment.

Now the challenge has spread beyond the immediate neighbourhood to other parts of the world where Japanese nationals are at risk, as the recent killing of two Japanese nationals by Islamic State in Syria showed.

This year both Asean and Japan will be taking stock of the four-year Plan of Action that they adopted in 2011 in Bali, as they prepare for a summit in December. Japan is expecting Asean to continue "hand-in-hand" with it on regional security issues — upholding the importance of maritime security including the South China Sea, freedom of overflight in the region, and shared awareness of the threat posed by North Korea — according to Kimihiro Ishikane, director-general of the International Cooperation Bureau at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Japan would also like its Southeast Asian partners to support Tokyo's proposal to discuss non-traditional security challenges such as humanitarian aid and disaster relief, and to share a common view on global issues such as health, climate change, water resources and environmental issues, and transnational threats including terrorism, the Middle East and UN reform, said Mr Ishikane, also a former ambassador to Asean.

"Asean is Japan's largest trading partner after China. Asean is economically, strategically and politically important to Japan," he said. "It is the best destination for investment with the top 20 companies from Japan based there. Altogether more than 7,000 firms in Asean have made Japan and Asean physically and strategically connected and responsive to each other."

The increased investment that is expected to arise from "Abenomics" will further support connectivity in the region, he added.

Akiyama Kohei, deputy director of the Foreign Policy Bureau's National Security Policy Division, said Japan would very much appreciate it if Malaysia, as this year's Asean chair, and Indonesia, the largest country in the region, would speak out strongly on the South China Sea, North Korea, and the threat of groups such as IS, at least at the annual Asean Regional Forum (ARF).

"Emphasising the rule of law does not mean we are asserting power. We are just asking members in the community to abide by the provisions of the law. We wish the Code of Conduct (regarding the South China Sea) will not be made weak," said Mr Kohei.

Sino-Japanese ties have been frosty since two Chinese government ships entered waters surrounding the Senkaku Islands in December 2008. After Japan transferred ownership of the islands to the state in September 2012, China made further provocative moves.

"What concerns us is a rapid increase in China's military spending," said an official in charge of bilateral issues with China, adding that this realisation had contributed to Japan's increase in its defence spending too, apart from the need to have a response to nuclear-armed North Korea.

"We just hope that Chinese leaders can tame nationalists inside the country, then the South China Sea will be either status quo or calmer. Hopefully, Xi Jinping should be able to consolidate power before his first presidential term ends in 2019," said the official, expressing hope that Asean could help persuade Beijing to soften its confrontational tone.

In building up stronger support for Japan's goals, officials in Tokyo also need to repackage conventional tools such as official development assistance (ODA). The launch in 2012 of the Japan Asean Integration Fund (JAIF) reflected this aim, said Ambassador Ishikane.

The 2 trillion yen in ODA pledged since 2012 has been well-spent in a number of areas, said Mr Ishikane. Funds have gone to supporting maritime security and the rule of law, enhancing connectivity and narrowing development gaps, improving disaster management, universal healthcare, and women's empowerment.

Funds from the US$100-million JAIF have been mostly disbursed for similar activities.

Of the ODA yen loans, Japan has set aside 600 billion yen for the CLMV economies — Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar and Vietnam — with 500 billion already disbursed, said Ritsuko Suzuki, deputy director for country assistance planning at the International Cooperation Bureau.

Yen loan projects, said Ms Suzuki, would be provided on request from a regional government. An example is the Thilawa special economic zone in Myanmar, where Japan is helping with  infrastructure development and technical cooperation for regulatory and administrative capacity development. In Vietnam, Japanese money is funding the Nhat Tan Bridge, which will feature advanced technologies for earthquake resistance.

While Japan is applying both soft and hard power to lobby Asean, China is doing similar things. Beijing has been promoting an "economic silk road" to the south and west, launched in 2013 in Kazakhstan, and a "maritime silk road" strategy for the South China Sea, launched in Nay Pyi Daw in 2014. However, the plans proposed by Xi Jinping go beyond general cooperation and involve specific projects and with financial offers.

"China has transformed [its approach] from confidence-building steps to specific engagement projects through the $100-billion Asian Infrastructure Investment Fund (half-sponsored by China) and the $40-billion Silk Road Fund to link China from surrounding directions," said Zhang Xizhen, a professor at Pridi Banomyong International College.

"We've set up lots of tools for trade and investment exchanges. Now there are real actions with construction of railways, highways, roads, oil and gas pipelines, ports and airports."

He rebutted criticisms by others that China was carrying out the equivalent of a Marshall Plan — a reference to the US-backed rebuilding of Europe after World War II — to counter Washington's rebalancing strategy to Asia.

"Naturally, with the social ties, financial bonds and strong military presence, China's silk road plans (land and maritime) will just balance the US efforts to restore its hegemony," said the Bangkok-based professor. "In fact, those who join China will benefit economically and technologically in terms of their national development.

"Of course, China will also benefit from becoming a central node of trade and investment attractions too. It's a win-win, especially for Asean."

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