Japan, a Part Time Lover

Diplomacy should be exercised with multiple channels. That was the lesson of the meeting of the leaders of Japan and the United States. While Japan concentrated the diplomacy to the handlings of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, US dealt with Japan separately. Actually, the President Barack Obama, the Secretary of State John Kerry, and other officials delivered different messages. When those messages are pulled together, the attitude of US should be interpreted as “We love Japan only we need her.”

Abe looked like satisfied with the result of the meeting. “I would declare that the credibility and the strong tie of Japan-US alliance was completely recovered,” told Abe in the press conference unusually set without appearance of US President. All he wanted to say was he was better than former prime ministers of the Democratic Party of Japan. The message was not for diplomacy, but for domestic politics.

The biggest topic for US in the meeting was how to take advantage of US-Japan alliance in building preferable regime in Asia-Pacific region. “Japan is one of our closest allies, and the US-Japan alliance is the central foundation for our regional security and so much of what we do in the Pacific region,” told Obama to the press. But in the summit meeting, China issue was not deliberately talked about. According to Japanese reports, Abe promised to calmly deal with the Senkaku issue, and both leaders reconfirmed that the Japan-US alliance works for regional peace and stability. That’s it. “He was more business-like than genial,” told Abe about Obama.

Kerry, however, treated with good smile in the meeting with Japanese Foreign Minister, Fumio Kishida. “I want to compliment Japan on the restraint that it has shown, the efforts to try to make sure that this does not flare up into a significant confrontation,” said Kerry on the Senkaku issue. He also confirmed US security commitments with Japan.

Press Secretary of White House, Jay Carney, was totally different from those positions showed by Obama and Kerry. Asked about former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s position that US would oppose any unilateral actions seeking to undermine Japan’s administration over Senkaku islands, Carney replied that “I haven’t seen those comments.” His answer showed the fact that even one of high officials of White House hadn’t been interested in the declining relationship between Japan and China.

The comment which reflected true position of US was Carney’s. For US, China is a true rival in the big game of the great powers, while Japan is no more than a tool to play that game. If the tension between Japan and China affects the game, Japan would be an existence that US wants to forget.