Asia

Though the national and strategic interests of the two nations can be very different, participants at the latest U.S.-China Strategic Dialogue pursued the same goal, with the same motivations.

When the Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ), led by Hatoyama Yukio, scored a landslide victory over the long-ruling Liberal Democrat Party (LDP), many U.S. observers saw potential for a very productive synergy with the Obama administration.

The headlines associated with Defense Secretary Robert Gates’ recent visit to Japan notwithstanding, relations between Washington and Tokyo are not as strained as they may appear . . . at least not yet. But there is no question that improper handling of a number of sensitive issues before, or worse yet during President Obama’s scheduled Nov.

The U.S.-Japan security alliance is an integral part of U.S. engagement with Asia, especially in the face of new and diffuse threats, and both Japan and the U.S. state the alliance is central to their national security. However, doubts continue to plague the alliance with each side questioning the other’s commitment.

President Obama makes his first trip to Asia to attend the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) meetings in Singapore this month. The president will begin his trip in Tokyo on November 12 and 13 and then travel to Singapore for the APEC meeting that runs from the 13th to 15th. From Singapore he will travel to China from the 15th to the 18th and finally visit Seoul on the 18th and 19th.

The Japan-U.S.-China strategic triangle is carefully watched across East Asia as the touchstone for regional peace and stability. A U.S.-Japan alliance that overtly seeks to contain China risks a dangerous scramble for Cold War style alignments across the region. A U.S.-China relationship that is too close risks marginalizing Japan and the other middle and small powers with her.

Even before its birth this past weekend at the 15th ASEAN Summit in Cha-am, Thailand, many commentators expressed disappointment with the ASEAN Intergovernmental Commission on Human Rights (AICHR). Human rights activists allege that ASEAN stripped the commission of any “teeth” in order to appease perennial human rights violators, such as Burma.

The just concluded 4th East Asia Summit (EAS) in Thailand will long be remembered as the venue for seemingly competing ideas from Australia and Japan for reorganizing regional cooperation in Asia. But will it also be known for having altered the course of Asian multilateralism?