NEWS & EVENTS

70 Years Strong: The US-Japan Alliance and Implications for Asian Diplomacy

On February 24, 2022, Director Kent Calder led a panel discussion with Dr. Makoto Iokibe, Special Advisor to the Imperial Household Agency Chancellor and Professor at Hyogo Prefectural University; Dr. Tosh Minohara, Professor at Kobe University and Chairman of the Research Institute for Indo-Pacific Affairs; and Ambassador David Shear, Senior Fellow at the Reischauer Center and Former Assistant Secretary of Defense for East Asia.

The panel explored the 160-year relationship between the United States and Japan examined in Dr. Makoto Iokibe’s book, The History of US-Japan Relations, as well as current and future challenges facing the US and Japan, including the Biden Administration’s Asia Policy and how the US-Japan Alliance should take leadership in the US-China competition and the Ukraine and Taiwan conflicts. Dr. Iokibe stressed that the true value of the US-Japan alliance must be demonstrated through a coordinated response to the threats posed by China and North Korea, while Dr. Minohara emphasized the importance of Japan updating its security identity and working in lock-step with the US in regards to the developing situation in Ukraine, expressing concerns over the long-term implications the conflict holds for the Indo-Pacific region. Amb. Shear seconded Dr. Minohara, adding that Japan has earned the right to a leadership role in Southeast Asia and needs to step up to assume it. Finally, with regards to the US, Dr. Minohara and Amb. Shear agreed that the biggest test going forward will be the extent to which the Biden Administration is able to devote the resources necessary to follow through on its commitments.