Between US President Josef Biden and the Japanese Prime Minister Suga Yoshihide the first face-to-face meeting was held after the latter’s inauguration. As the Suga’s administration fails to win support from the people, the premier apparently behaved to regain popularity by showing a contestant-like stance toward China. Thus, he has renounced the vital role of Japan as a cornerstone for peace in the eastern Asian region, including the Taiwan Strait.
JAPANESE GOVERNMENT HAS STEPPED IN A DANGEROUS PATH, CHASING US ADMINISTRATION
The joint leaders’ statement specifies ‘peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait’, but the expression therein to ‘encourage the peaceful resolution of cross-Strait issues’ means threatening through deterrence.
Absurd diplomacy
President Biden regards his strategy toward China as a ‘struggle over viability between democracy and autocracy, placing the greatest importance on Taiwan from the military perspective. This stance calls legitimacy of the China’s governance in question and strays beyond the diplomatic norms. The Chinese side, which maintains a rigid posture toward the US, however, does not query into the authority under capitalism.
An accusation to ‘oppose any unilateral attempts to change the status quo in the East China Sea’ implies to suppress China by military means, while the country has been working to ease the containment network forged by several decades of balance of power of the international community. In addition, the statement even stipulates another round of realignment of US military bases in Japan, including the new base in Henoko, Okinawa, which is under construction, and the Mageshima Island, Kagoshima Prefecture, which has a training site, the Field Carrier Landing Practice Facility.
The best use of US policies
The Suga government has made a dangerous step to enter the realm of the US policy, obeying faithfully. The Japanese government’s recklessness is starkly evident, when comparing the behavior with that of the Moon government of the Republic of Korea (ROK).
Immediately after the joint communiqué of 2 plus 2 between the US and Japan last March, a parallel statement was issued in the same framework between US and ROK. The Chinese government has made no reference to the latter. Japan constitutes the Quad, or a group of four states including US, Australia and India, which ROK does not commit in.
ROK, which is ready to bring peace on the Korean Peninsula and to reunify the separated people, seeks earnestly for wisdoms in diplomacy for the sake of stability in the northeastern Asian region, including its commitments in China. Meanwhile, the Suga administration clings to a contesting policy toward China, excessively leaning on the US-Japan alliance. This posture does not come from the pressure of the US administration: it is a trick of the Japanese government to make the best use of the US’s target in order to strengthen its own authority, power of the Liberal Democratic Party. The Suga government is to heighten Japan’s military capabilities on the basis of implementing the war-driving laws and to amend the Constitution, in which Article Nine prohibits a war as a means to settle international conflicts.
Premier Suga declared during the press meeting after the summit talks his determination to intensify military strength of his country.
A leaders’ meeting is scheduled in late May between President Biden and ROK’s President Moon Jae-in. It is probable that they will not deliver a communiqué to provoke China. Separately, the ROK government has refused the US request to owe an increased sum of the huge costs to maintain the US military in the peninsula, which was accepted reciprocally. Concerning relations with the US, the current ROK’s administration keeps distinctively different attitudes from those of the Japanese government, which is like a tame dog of the United States.
Cooperation in researching technologies
One more focal point found in the Japan-US declaration is a description on supply-chains of semi-conductors, a resource for military equipment; it says cooperation in technological development in exclusion of China.
Japanese big businesses export more to China today than to the US; if China takes countermeasures to cope with the new situation, they will suffer.
It is not easy to coordinate conflicting interests among the regime’s internal circles. However, its vassals who want to rewrite the Constitution will keep telling a lie in order to uphold power: ‘the Japan-US alliance is the best answer for prosperity of Japan’.
会談後の共同声明は「台湾海峡の平和と安定」を明記した。「問題の平和解決を促す」とは中国への「抑止力」による威嚇だ。
バイデン大統領は対中戦略を「民主主義国家と専制主義国家の有用性を巡る闘い」と位置付け、軍事的には台湾を最重視している。この姿勢は中国の体制自体を問題とし、外交としては常執を逸している。対米強硬の中国でも米の資本主義体制自体を問題とはしない。
「東シナ海における一方的な現状変更」阻止を主張するのは、数十年も前の力関係で形成された米国の中国包囲網を緩めようとする中国を軍事で抑え込むものだ。その軍事拠点である辺野古基地建設と馬毛島訓練基地はじめ在日米軍再編実施も明記した。
菅政権は危険な対米追随に一段と踏み込んだ。その無謀さは韓国・文政権と比べて際立つ。３月の日米２＋２の直後に開かれた米韓２＋２共同声明は、中国には言及していない。韓国は日米豪印の連携には加わらない。
朝鮮半島の平和と統一を目指す韓国は、中国とどう連携するかを含め、東北アジアの平和のためにあらゆる外交的知恵を絞る。菅政権の中国敵視・日米同盟偏重は、米国から強いられたというより自民党の権力維持・戦争法実働化による軍事力拡大・改憲達成の環境作りのために米政権の姿勢を利用しているのだ。
菅首相は会談後の記者会見で、「日本の防衛力強化の決意」を明言した。５月下旬のバイデン・文の米韓首脳会談では、中国を刺激するような声明は出ないだろう。文政権は、在韓米軍経費の巨額の増額要求を拒み、米国も受け入れた。米国のポチのような日本政府とは違う。
共同声明のもう一つの焦点は、軍事資源である半導体などのサプライチェーン（供給網）で、中国を排除する日米の「技術共同開発」だ。対中輸出が対米輸出を上回る日本の大企業は、中国が対抗措置をとった場合、損害は大きい。
支配階級内部の利害対立の調整は、容易でないだろう。しかし、改憲勢力は権力を維持するためにも、「日米同盟こそ日本の繁栄」というデマゴギーを振りまき続けるだろう。
英訳版↓
No. 1207 Japan-US Top Leaders Meeting
Between US President Josef Biden and the Japanese Prime Minister Suga Yoshihide the first face-to-face meeting was held after the latter’s inauguration. As the Suga’s administration fails to win support from the people, the premier apparently behaved to regain popularity by showing a contestant-like stance toward China. Thus, he has renounced the vital role of Japan as a cornerstone for peace in the eastern Asian region, including the Taiwan Strait.
JAPANESE GOVERNMENT HAS STEPPED IN A DANGEROUS PATH, CHASING US ADMINISTRATION
The joint leaders’ statement specifies ‘peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait’, but the expression therein to ‘encourage the peaceful resolution of cross-Strait issues’ means threatening through deterrence.
Absurd diplomacy
President Biden regards his strategy toward China as a ‘struggle over viability between democracy and autocracy, placing the greatest importance on Taiwan from the military perspective. This stance calls legitimacy of the China’s governance in question and strays beyond the diplomatic norms. The Chinese side, which maintains a rigid posture toward the US, however, does not query into the authority under capitalism.
An accusation to ‘oppose any unilateral attempts to change the status quo in the East China Sea’ implies to suppress China by military means, while the country has been working to ease the containment network forged by several decades of balance of power of the international community. In addition, the statement even stipulates another round of realignment of US military bases in Japan, including the new base in Henoko, Okinawa, which is under construction, and the Mageshima Island, Kagoshima Prefecture, which has a training site, the Field Carrier Landing Practice Facility.
The best use of US policies
The Suga government has made a dangerous step to enter the realm of the US policy, obeying faithfully. The Japanese government’s recklessness is starkly evident, when comparing the behavior with that of the Moon government of the Republic of Korea (ROK).
Immediately after the joint communiqué of 2 plus 2 between the US and Japan last March, a parallel statement was issued in the same framework between US and ROK. The Chinese government has made no reference to the latter. Japan constitutes the Quad, or a group of four states including US, Australia and India, which ROK does not commit in.
ROK, which is ready to bring peace on the Korean Peninsula and to reunify the separated people, seeks earnestly for wisdoms in diplomacy for the sake of stability in the northeastern Asian region, including its commitments in China. Meanwhile, the Suga administration clings to a contesting policy toward China, excessively leaning on the US-Japan alliance. This posture does not come from the pressure of the US administration: it is a trick of the Japanese government to make the best use of the US’s target in order to strengthen its own authority, power of the Liberal Democratic Party. The Suga government is to heighten Japan’s military capabilities on the basis of implementing the war-driving laws and to amend the Constitution, in which Article Nine prohibits a war as a means to settle international conflicts.
Premier Suga declared during the press meeting after the summit talks his determination to intensify military strength of his country.
A leaders’ meeting is scheduled in late May between President Biden and ROK’s President Moon Jae-in. It is probable that they will not deliver a communiqué to provoke China. Separately, the ROK government has refused the US request to owe an increased sum of the huge costs to maintain the US military in the peninsula, which was accepted reciprocally. Concerning relations with the US, the current ROK’s administration keeps distinctively different attitudes from those of the Japanese government, which is like a tame dog of the United States.
Cooperation in researching technologies
One more focal point found in the Japan-US declaration is a description on supply-chains of semi-conductors, a resource for military equipment; it says cooperation in technological development in exclusion of China.
Japanese big businesses export more to China today than to the US; if China takes countermeasures to cope with the new situation, they will suffer.
It is not easy to coordinate conflicting interests among the regime’s internal circles. However, its vassals who want to rewrite the Constitution will keep telling a lie in order to uphold power: ‘the Japan-US alliance is the best answer for prosperity of Japan’.
April 27, 2021