US President Donald Trump and Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba met at the White House on Feb. 7 for official talks, in Trump’s second meeting with a foreign head of state since returning to office. Some of the central items of discussion concerning Taiwan, Japan and the US are praiseworthy.
First, with regard to Japan, the US emphasized the US-Japan alliance, with Trump proclaiming that “the US is totally committed to the security of Japan,” and that the US would “extend the full strength of American deterrence capabilities and defense of our friend and ally, 100 percent.” However, he did not touch upon the issue of raised tariffs on Japanese products, saving Tokyo diplomatic face.
With regard to the US, Ishiba announced that Japan would increase investments in the US to US$1 trillion. Moreover, Tokyo would within two years increase national defense spending to as much as 2 percent of GDP after obtaining public backing to conform with US “deterrence capabilities” against China, thereby saving the US diplomatic face.
Third is how Taiwan views the meeting. In the Japan-US joint leaders’ statement, apart from reasserting previous talking points that “emphasize the importance of peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait,” it was both countries’ first statement that they “strongly oppose attempts to use force or threat of force to change the status quo in the East China Sea,” bringing reassurance to Taipei.
The joint statement is slightly more direct than in the past. When Ishiba was first inaugurated, he traveled to the US and made similarly strong statements about the Taiwan Strait, but this month’s statement signifies that his position on the matter is much clearer.
During the meeting and the news conference that followed, Trump praised late former Japanese prime minister Shinzo Abe in front of Ishiba, emphasizing the importance of the Abe’s Indo-Pacific strategy, expressing that Ishiba had gradually adjusted his pace and is steadily merging fully with Abe’s foreign affairs policies.
Ishiba never touched upon the “Asia-Pacific NATO” he unveiled during his campaign for president of the Liberal Democratic Party, nor his proposal to “rebuild the Japan-US alliance,” nor the call to be on equal footing with the US.
Instead, the focus was on the 2016 meeting with the late prime minister and his Indo-Pacific strategy, which Trump responded to by trying to curb Beijing’s push for hegemony.
Ishiba’s change in trajectory is partially due to Trump, but it also signifies that during the US president’s term, Japan would follow Washington’s lead in US-China competition.
In particular, with Ishiba facing opposition control of the Diet with his party in the minority, he is likely to face a Cabinet crisis following Japan’s upcoming national budget review next month. During this critical time of internal and external pressure, he has not had the time or space to be “pro-China,” as some of his political rivals accuse him of being. During the most recent summit, Ishiba received a warm welcome in the US, and he temporarily avoided the imposition of US tariffs on Japan — a double-win.
In addition to economic benefits, the US has grown much stronger in its diplomacy and defense through Japan’s contributions. Taiwan, for its part, has become a guiding compass in the East China Sea due to the stability of the US-Japan alliance, making it harder for Beijing to harass it. Taiwan is achieving its goals just by staying the course, something the three countries all seem to welcome and appreciate.
Wang Hui-sheng is chief director of the Kisei Ladies’ and Children’s Hospital in Japan, and a founding member of the East Asian Research Institute.
Translated by Tim Smith
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