Contest between the Two

With bright smile and speech for hope, two major players in Asia performed as if contenders of Asian beauty contest in Brunei. While Chinese Prime Minister, Li Keqiang, stressed China’s economic contribution to the region, Japanese Prime Minister, Shinzo Abe, asked parties to be united on security issues. That reflected their basic standpoint of ignoring negative aspects of their own behaviors toward Asia. However, the nations in Southeast Asia are basically not willing to choose one as the most beautiful.

Li met with leaders from the countries of Association of Southeast Asian Nations, presenting a kind of concept similar to the Great Southeast Asia Co-prosperity Sphere, which Japan had once upheld in the World War II. “China’s cooperation with ASEAN is our common interest. Promoting the economic partnership, we are deepening economic integration,” told Li at the meeting. China has a plan to expand its amount of trade with ASEAN by two and a half times more than current level, and an initiative to establish Asia Infrastructure Bank.

Taking advantage of the absence of his rival, Barack Obama, Li acted as if the leader of the region. On the territorial issue, Li emphasized the stability of South China Sea, acknowledging the frustration of Philippine, one of the Asian allies of the United States. In the current diplomatic schedule of two top leaders of China, Li and President Xi Jinping, Philippine was excluded as visiting nation. China looks like ignoring unfavorable countries by isolating them from framework of economic cooperation.

Abe, on the other hand, tried to get support on his concern to Chinese actions in South China Sea at Japan-ASEAN Summit Meeting. “I am very worried about the act of changing status quo by power,” told him. Japan has a similar interest against China’s promotion to the Pacific Ocean. He has had no effective achievement over China’s invasion around Senkaku Islands in East China Sea. He reiterated the necessity of solving those problems according to international law and supported ASEAN’s effort to have an action standard with China.

At the beginning of the framework of ASEAN Plus Three, the economic development model of Asia was resembled to the shape of bird migration. The Japanese officials liked to put Japan at the top of the fight of geese, shaping like boomerang. Now, the economic leader for ASEAN seems to have replaced by China. Abe did not want to bring an image of economic decline of Japan at the meeting.

The trend of China’s emerge would not be changed by Japan’s criticisms against China. For ASEAN countries, it is welcomed to be benefited with prosperity, while they don’t like export of trouble.