- Summary
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- In a surprisingly blunt speech, Japan's
outgoing ambassador to the U.S. warned Washington to cease criticizing
Japan, lest the criticism spark a revival in Japan of the militant nationalism
of 60 years ago. This frank use of the specter of World War II is a reversal
for Japan, which has tried to downplay its history, and will likely color
Japanese foreign relations for some time.
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- Analysis
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- In a surprisingly blunt speech to the
Foreign Correspondents Club of Japan on March 16, outgoing Japanese Ambassador
to the United States Kunihiko Saito warned the U.S. to reduce its criticism
of Japan, or risk reviving militant nationalist sentiment in Japan. Saito
said that Japan appreciates the frank advice that the U.S. has offered,
and is carrying out many of the reforms that Washington has advocated.
However, Saito insisted that the U.S. frankness, and particularly the public
manner in which U.S. views are expressed, "may cause some unintended
emotional reactions." "We naturally resent such criticism, even
when the content of such criticism is totally justified," he said.
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- And while he said continued U.S. pressure
could hurt the Japanese economy and Japanese-U.S. relations, Saito warned
that the biggest threat may be the revival of Japanese nationalism. "Memories
of the 1930s and 40s are still fresh in our minds. We should always be
careful about the revival of nationalism," said Saito. "I'm not
worried about a problem yet, but I don't think we should forget that only
50 or 60 years ago we made some big mistakes, and one of the reasons, in
my view, was excessive nationalism," he added.
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- Saito singled out the U.S. Trade Representative's
Office as a major source of the unwelcome criticism. He also warned of
rising protectionist sentiment among U.S. companies and in Congress. "Tensions
surrounding trade between our two countries have... increased in recent
months," he said. "Our trade surplus with the United States has
been increasing rather sharply and has become a political issue, at least
in Washington," said Saito. He added, "If the United States economy
starts to have problems, the issue of trade imbalance will surely become
a very serious political issue between our two countries." Saito said
Japanese officials hope to quell the growing trade dispute between Japan
and the U.S. before Prime Minister Obuchi visits the U.S. in May.
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- How Saito set about to quell the dispute
is what is so striking, and thus reflects the magnitude of the crisis in
U.S.-Japanese relations. Japan has long sought to put the legacy of World
War II behind it. Every Japanese foreign endeavor since 1945 has been overshadowed
by the memory of Japan's biggest foreign endeavor, and Tokyo has been very
sensitive about making the memory any fresher than necessary. Raising the
specter of Japanese militant nationalism to induce - more precisely to
threaten - the U.S. into being more diplomatic in its criticism goes completely
against this policy. Moreover, while made in the context of U.S.- Japanese
economic relations, Saito's comments feed into several other heated policy
debates as well.
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- The most prominent debate, and the one
that has, understandably, been the most affected by Japan's wartime legacy,
is over the role of Japan's military. Japan's Diet is scheduled to address
new legislation in its upcoming session that is required to enable the
revised U.S.-Japan Defense Guidelines to take effect. Central to this debate
is the planned expansion of the roles Japan's "Self Defense Forces"
can play and the geographic reach of Japanese military operations. Under
proposed laws, armed Japanese troops would be allowed to deploy abroad
for the evacuation of Japanese and other foreign nationals from trouble
spots, and to return fire in self defense if fired upon. Additionally,
while still vaguely defined, the area in which Japan can operate in support
of U.S. forces will apparently be extended to cover Taiwan, something China
vehemently opposes.
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- On March 16, Chinese Foreign Ministry
spokesman Sun Yuxi warned that, "Japan should take concrete steps...
to limit its defense to its own territory and adjacent waters, and not
embark on the road of becoming a military power." China has also criticized
Japan's planned participation in a U.S.-led theater missile defense system
development program, as well as the potential extension of that system
to include Taiwan. Japan is immediately concerned about North Korea's missile
program and, adopting the policy that the best defense is a good offense,
has reserved the right to take preemptive strikes against North Korean
launchers in self defense if it perceives a threat. But as in Taiwan, a
Japanese missile defense system is clearly aimed at the existing missile
threat from China.
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- Saito's warning of growing Japanese nationalism
is not merely a negotiating ploy. The country's economic troubles have
been scarcely addressed and are far from over. As a result, relations with
the U.S. can only be expected to deteriorate. Japan is locked in a high-profile
dispute with Russia over sovereignty over the Kuriles. The country is in
the midst of a fundamental reevaluation of the Japanese military's roles.
And in the midst of this, Tokyo is facing calls from Southeast Asia for
it to take a leadership role in Asia. Sovereignty, leadership, defense,
foreign economic pressure - all push nationalism to the core of Japan's
domestic political debate.
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- Evidence of this can be seen in the dispute
over official recognition of Japan's Hinomaru (rising sun) flag and Kimigayo
(His Majesty's Reign) national anthem. While widely used, the flag and
anthem are not officially recognized in Japan, as they are considered to
be linked to Japan's military and imperial past. The suicide in February
of a high school principal in Hiroshima, due to a dispute over the use
of the symbols at a graduation, has pushed the question of official recognition
of the flag and anthem to the top of the Diet's agenda for the upcoming
session.
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- That Saito would raise the specter of
revived nationalism, considering the sensitivity of the subject and its
potential impact on a range of foreign and domestic policies, not only
demonstrates the dire state to which U.S.-Japan relations are sinking,
but also the very reality of Saito's threat. However, with Japan still
slow to alter its export dependent recovery plan, there is little to suggest
that the U.S. will quiet its criticism of Japan any time soon. The question
is, with Japan no longer shy about depositing the nationalism threat smack
in the middle of the negotiating table, and the U.S. likely to be unresponsive,
has Japan set off on an irreversible course?
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