AT: U.S. Japanese Relations

AT: U.S. Japanese Relations

Michael J. Green (holds the Japan Chair and is a senior adviser at CSIS, as well as an associate professor of international relations at Georgetown University) 2006: U.S.-Japanese Relations after Koizumi: Convergence or Cooling? http://www.twq.com/06autumn/docs/06autumn_green.pdf

For their part, Bush and Koizumi have pointed to what they see as the en­during qualities of a converging U.S.-Japanese security relationship. In their joint statement for the summit, entitled “The Japan-U.S. Alliance of the New Century,” the leaders “celebrated their close personal friendship and the deep and increasing ties between the American and Japanese people” and noted that “the United States and Japan stand together not only against mutual threats, but also for the advancement of core universal values.”4 They also pointed to the importance of “deepening bilateral economic co­operation.” On the whole, they “shared the expectation that the U.S.-Japan friendship and global cooperation shall continue to grow stronger.” In other words, the two leaders spotlighted exactly what has contributed to the strong U.S.-Japanese alliance under their tenure and what they believe will likely keep it strong: relationships between their leaders, the external threat envi­ronment, common values, and economic relations. Personal Synergy Although another sighting of an Elvis-singing leader like Koizumi may not emerge for some time, the odds are good that the president and next prime minister will have reason to continue good personal ties and to keep their countries aligned. For the critics who say Bush became too close to Koizumi to be correct, one would have to assume that the next leader of Japan will resent that relationship and push away from the United States or simply be unwilling to attempt the same kind of close relationship. Judging from the race to succeed Koizumi as president of the Liberal Democratic Party and prime minister of Japan, however, the next prime minister will likely come into office with an affinity to collaborate with U.S. leadership.
2. U.S. Japanese alliance cemented through military cooperation

Nicholas Szechenyi (a fellow and assistant director of the Office of the Japan Chair at CSIS) 2006: A Turning Point for Japan’s Self-Defense Forces. http://www.twq.com/06autumn/docs/06autumn_szechenyi.pdf

One hundred and fifty years after it was drawn out of self-imposed isolation by the United States, Japan is once again opening up at Washington's behest, displaying an unprecedented global commitment by joining the US-led postwar campaign in Iraq. The two Pacific economic superpowers mark on Wednesday the 150th anniversary of the Treaty of Peace and Amity, which established formal relations between them. Analysts said they have never been closer than today. "The two countries have never demonstrated their alliance so conspicuously as now," said Takehiko Yamamoto, professor of international politics at Waseda University. The United States would never spurn Japan, even as it makes overtures to China as the emerging economic superpower, Yamamoto said. This included if Japan underwent an economic revival that allowed it to dominate US markets again, as it did in the 1980s, to the point where it is regarded as a threat, he said. "Japan and the United States will remain in the same boat, even if the sea gets choppy," he said, noting that Japan holds more than 40 percent of all US treasury bills. In an anniversary message in Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi's e-mail magazine, US ambassador to Japan Howard Baker described the two countries as "the best team." "We work together for a common purpose, especially when the game is on the line," he said, praising Koizumi for "great political courage and great moral leadership in the war on terror. Baker said Washington had the "greatest respect" for the 550 Japanese troops Koizumi controversially sent to Iraq on a humanitarian mission to help with postwar reconstruction. The troops dispatch is opposed by about half the Japanese people because it is the first time since World War II that Japanese soldiers have been deployed in a country where fighting is still under way, where they may get drawn into combat in breach of the pacifist constitution.

But political suspicions between Japan and China are a fact of life and, given Japanese apprehension of China's intentions as it grows not only economically but also militarily, Tokyo is unlikely to want to weaken its security relationship with Washington. Moreover, the US under the Obama administration is keen to make up for lost time and bolster its influence in East Asia. That being the case, the Japan-US relationship is likely to remain strong for as long as China remains viewed as a potential threat by Japan and other countries in East Asia.