By Thalif Deen
UNITED NATIONS | 30 July 2024 (IDN) —The US, responding to a new nuclear alliance comprising Russia, China and North Korea, has reassured Japan protection under its nuclear umbrella and pledged to “elevate the Japan-US alliance to an unprecedented height.”
At a July 28 press briefing in Tokyo, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, standing next to Japanese Foreign Minister Kamikawa Yoko, said: “I want to reaffirm our extended nuclear deterrence commitment to Japan.”
Together, the United States and Japan face a complex security environment that demands an integrated approach.
“The People’s Republic of China (PRC), Russia, and North Korea continue to threaten global security with their increasing emphasis on nuclear capabilities, so our extended deterrence relationship is more important than ever”, he said.
The US is also playing a lead role in at least two security partnerships in the region: QUAD and AUKUS.
The Quadrilateral Security Dialogue (QSD), known as the Quad, and initiated in 2007, is a strategic security dialogue between Australia, India, Japan, and the United States.
The AUKUS, is a trilateral security partnership for the Indo-Pacific region comprising Australia, the United Kingdom, and the United States launched in September 2021. The partnership involves the US and the UK assisting Australia in acquiring nuclear-powered submarines.
The U.S. and Philippine governments have also entered into negotiations in its “two-plus-two” bilateral agreement, mostly to thwart China’s encroachments.
When Russian President Vladimir Putin and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un signed a pact last month to revive a Cold War-era mutual defense pledge between two of the world’s nuclear powers, it also had the implicit support a third nuclear power: China.
The new nuclear alliance, which has triggered fears in Japan and South Korea, ensures the possible sharing of Russia’s knowledge of satellites and missile technologies with North Korea.
The new pact has also resulted in a sharp divide between Russia, China and North Korea on the one hand and the US, Japan and South Korea on the other.
Re-affirming “our unwavering support for the alliance between Japan and the United States”, Blinken said the cornerstone of peace, security, stability in the Indo-Pacific and really critical to tackling global challenges.
“We were saying earlier as we were meeting that I don’t think there’s been a time – at least in my experience – when the alliance between our countries has been stronger. Indeed, I think it’s the strongest it’s ever been, and it’s reflected in the fact that we’re working together not only on bilateral issues, not only on regional issues, but on global issues”, he added.
After a meeting with Japanese Defense Minister Kihara Minoru in Tokyo July 28, US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin III said: “Our countries have made outstanding progress toward our shared vision of a free and open Indo-Pacific and our shared belief in a rules-based international order.
Those shared principles are helping us tackle common challenges. We continue to see the PRC engaging in coercive behavior and trying to change the status quo in the East and South China Seas, around Taiwan, and throughout the region. We’re also alarmed by North Korea’s nuclear program, its reckless rhetoric, and its deepening cooperation with Russia, all of which threaten regional and global security”.
“I’m also proud of our work together to support Japan’s counterstrike capability, Austin said, at a Tokyo news briefing on July 28.
“We’ll bolster defense industrial cooperation, including missile co-production, and we’ll increase our bilateral presence in the southwest islands. These efforts will improve our ability to deter and manage coercive and destabilizing behavior. We’re also strengthening our defense cooperation with other allies and partners in the region, including Australia, India, the Republic of Korea, and the Philippines.”
The US assistance to Japan is also a two-way street. Japan, in turn, is expected to reciprocate buying billions of dollars in US weapons.
According to a June 2024 joint report, the U.S. Department of Commerce’s, Industry & Analysis-Aerospace Office and U.S. Commercial Service, Japan is a lucrative market for imported aircraft, aircraft parts, and engines.
“U.S. firms have an overwhelming presence in the market due to long-standing relationships, some spanning over 70 years, with domestic manufacturers and trading firms. U.S. firms are also presented with opportunities in the market as the domestic industry undertakes international projects, develops transport and patrol aircraft for defense, as well as small jet engines for civil aviation”.
U.S. firms dominate Japan’s aerospace sector, benefiting from long-standing partnerships and increasing involvement of Japanese companies in international defense and civil aviation projects.
The resurgence in aircraft demand post-COVID-19 highlights a recovery in the aerospace sector, with a gradual increase in production for Boeing components by Japanese manufacturers such as Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Kawasaki Heavy Industries, and Subaru.
This recovery is supported by the U.S. FAA lifting the ban on Boeing 787 deliveries and a cautious approach to Boeing 777X program delays.
In 2022, Japan imported $8.3 billion worth of aerospace products, with 59.6% coming from the U.S., and continues to offer duty-free importation on aircraft and parts under the WTO Agreement on Trade in Civil Aircraft, according to the report.
Japan is also increasing its defense budget in response to a challenging regional security landscape, underscored by North Korean missile advancements and China’s rising influence.
The Cabinet approved a historic $55.9 billion budget for FY2024, marking a 16.5% increase from the prior year, to enhance capabilities across naval, land, and air dimensions, including the modification of Izumo-class carriers for F-35B operations, acquisition of new armored vehicles, and procurement of F-35A and F-35B fighter jets.
The budget focuses on advancing Japan’s defense technology research and development, with significant investments in stand-off defense, counter-hypersonic capabilities, and the Global Combat Air Program (GCAP) in collaboration with Italy and the UK.
“Our mission is to increase U.S. exports, enhance job creation, strengthen national security, promote and protect U.S. commercial interests abroad, and deliver customized solutions to ensure that U.S. businesses compete and win in the global marketplace” the report said.
U.S. firms dominate Japan’s aerospace sector, benefiting from long-standing partnerships and increasing involvement of Japanese companies in international defense and civil aviation projects.
Meanwhile, Japan’s space industry, renowned for its world-class industrial and technological prowess in R&D, is shifting its focus towards the commercialization of space technology, with concerted efforts from the Japanese government and industry to grow its space business.
This pivot builds on a long-standing international collaboration in space development and exploration, initiated by a Japan-US Joint Communiqué in 1969, and has seen Japan engaging in significant projects primarily led by NASA, with expectations for expanded collaboration in space exploration and science.
Recent developments have further strengthened space cooperation between the U.S. and Japan, including the signing of the Gateway Implementation Agreement in November 2022 as part of NASA’s Artemis missions for lunar exploration, offering a JAXA astronaut a crew position on a future Artemis mission.
Additionally, Japan’s early commitment to the ISS extension until 2030, the signing of the Framework Agreement for Cooperation in Outer Space in January 2023, and subsequent dialogues and plans for a trade mission in May 2023, underscore a deepening partnership aimed at advancing space science, exploration, technology, and commercial opportunities between the two nations. [IDN-InDepthNews]
Photo: Indian External Affairs Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar, Japanese Foreign Minister Yoko Kamikawa, Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong and US Secretary of State Antony Blinken pose as they attend a Quad Ministerial Meeting in Tokyo, Japan, on 29 July 2024. Credit: @DrSJaishankar, X
