Japan-ASEAN ties
Japan-ASEAN ties
Japanese Prime Minister Ryutaro Hashimoto wound up his
Southeast Asian tour yesterday with a message to leaders in the
region of his intention to expand and deepen Tokyo's ties with
countries in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN),
both as a group as well as individually. His major foreign policy
speech -- delivered in Singapore, the last stop on his tour that
included five ASEAN capitals including Jakarta -- recognized the
importance of ASEAN, not only to Japan and Asia, but to
international diplomacy as well.
The prime minister's proposed "Hashimoto Doctrine" suggests
that the two sides expand ties beyond economics, which have
underpinned their strong relations to date. He cited terrorism,
the environment, health and welfare, food and energy shortages,
population, AIDS and drugs as issues that Japan and ASEAN would
have to work closely on in the 21st century.
A decade or two ago, the suggestion of closer Japan-ASEAN
cooperation would have raised suspicions among some people in the
region. For them, it would have smacked of the Greater Asia
Coprosperity Sphere, a concept which sent Tokyo on its East Asia
military campaign in the 1930s that started World War II in Asia.
A decade or two ago, relations between Japan and individual
ASEAN countries were based on dependence, as Japan's economic
prowess was able to achieve what its military was not 50 to 60
years ago. Southeast Asian countries were reduced to being mere
suppliers -- but not the only suppliers -- of raw materials for
Japanese industries. Any attempt to strengthen or formalize this
condition at the time was bound to raise old emotions, as
witnessed in the various anti-Japanese protests, some of them
violent, in the 1970s and 1980s in ASEAN capitals.
Times have changed and so have the conditions surrounding the
relations between Japan and ASEAN. Memories of Japan's war
atrocities remain in the minds of a few survivors, but for the
majority of ASEAN's people, they are historical records. The
economies of ASEAN have grown and their exports have become more
diversified. Furthermore, their relations with Japan have
increasingly become interdependent and mutually beneficial.
Given the prevailing conditions, Hashimoto could not have come
up with his doctrine at a better time. His emphasis on expanding
ties beyond economics should dispel any lingering doubts about
Japan's designs for Southeast Asia. Economic relations will
continue to be important, but they should not monopolize the
ties. Given the strength of their economies, ASEAN should feel
more confident about trading with Japan and more comfortable
addressing economic disputes that might come up between them.
Japan is still the largest export market for some ASEAN countries
and their prime source of investment, but relations are taking on
the look of equal partnerships.
The key to fruitful relations between Japan and ASEAN lies in
the recognition of interdependence as well as shared interests
and goals, even if they have different approaches to resolving
problems. Japan's concerns about security in Asia, for example,
are shared by ASEAN countries, though Hashimoto's defense of the
American military presence in the region might be frowned upon by
some ASEAN leaders.
This is where dialog comes in and can play a key role in
resolving and ironing out differences. Hashimoto's proposal for
more intensive talks, including an annual summit between Japanese
and ASEAN leaders, should be seen in this light. ASEAN's leaders
need to give Hashimoto's proposal a serious look when they meet
in Kuala Lumpur for their informal summit in December. After all,
it is a partnership between Japan and ASEAN that he is
suggesting, not an alliance.