History Forum / General / General Topics / December 2003

WASHINGTON TIMES
Editorial
12/30/2003

Our friend Japan

   Japan took a big step yesterday toward helping stabilize
post-Saddam Iraq. After negotiations between Japanese Prime Minister
Junichiro Koizumi and U.S. envoy James Baker III, Tokyo agreed to
forgive "the vast majority" of the $7.76 billion that Baghdad owes the
Asian nation. More than $3.5 billion of the money contained in that
bill consists of interest and penalties, funds which the Japanese have
relinquished in debt-forgiveness deals with other countries in the
past. This makes the hole a new Iraqi government must climb out of
much smaller — and in response, China signaled that it too might
forgive the $1 billion it is owed by Iraq. Yesterday's announcement is
representative of the geopolitical contribution Japan has been making
as one of America's most reliable allies.
   There is no major nation with a stronger pacifist political
inclination than modern Japan. After the humiliation and destruction
of its islands during the defeat of World War II, the Japanese
population became overwhelmingly antiwar, and for decades was
adamantly opposed to any military maneuvers or involvement outside of
its borders. It is this tradition that makes Japanese cooperation with
the United States since September 11 so historic. The first major
change in Japan's defense-only military posture came last year, when
the Japanese Navy dispatched supply and medical vessels to aid the
allied war effort to destroy the Taliban in Afghanistan. Although the
ships served only support functions, the symbolic value of the Rising
Sun flag sailing through blue waters made the statement that a new era
of military involvement had in fact commenced.
   Tokyo has continued to be steadfast in its commitments to U.S.
military efforts since the Afghan mission. Mr. Koizumi worked the
phones before the Iraq war started to try to convince international
leaders to back President Bush's appeals for support in the United
Nations. In addition to the debt forgiveness announced yesterday,
Japan was one of the first governments in the world to provide funds
for Iraqi reconstruction, which it did to the tune of $5 billion. It
provided substantial financial aid during the first Gulf War a decade
ago, but that was seen largely as a payment to make up for the refusal
to send troops to help the coalition oust the Iraqi army from Kuwait.
This year, Tokyo is sending cash and troops.
   Five days ago, the first Japanese units were deployed to bases in
Kuwait and Qatar. Eventually, Japanese troop strength in the Middle
East will reach 1,000 — making the Iraq mission the country's largest
military operation abroad since World War II. Overt cooperation from a
nation traditionally reluctant to dispatch its armed forces puts
pressure on many nations not yet on board with the Bush
administration's plan to get Iraq back on its feet. Japan's
willingness to risk casualties speaks volumes of its commitment to the
cause. Further assisting in relieving some tensions in the Middle
East, Tokyo is sending millions of yen and disaster-relief crews to
help Iran in the aftermath of the recent earthquake.Goodwill with
Tehran may prove useful in the future.
   An editorial in yesterday's Japan Times listed the deployment of
Japanese Self-Defense Forces to Iraq as one of the two most
significant events in the nation in 2003. Although not listed, a
development that is nearly as significant is China's acquiescence to
Japan's participation in six-way talks over North Korea's nuclear
weapons programs. Tokyo's re-emergence as a strategic player on the
diplomatic scene can only crowd China's ambitions in East and
Southeast Asia. For years, American sea power was considered the only
check on Beijing. Many Asian nations worry that the United States is
not playing an active enough role and that Beijing is gradually
replacing Washington as the regional powerbroker. Japan's increasing
prominence thrusts it back into its natural place as a regional
balance to Chinese hegemonic ambitions.
   Japan is America's best friend in Asia and rivals Britain as its
most reliable ally worldwide. Debt relief and reconstruction aid are
significant given the nation's dire financial position for more than a
decade. But Tokyo's support for other U.S. initiatives — such as
space-based missile defense — is impressive because of their
controversial nature. By comparison, strident and consistent
opposition to U.S. policy by France and Germany begin to make European
leaders look more like former allies than current ones.