Conflicting Agendas: The U.S. and Its East Asian Allies
Washington currently confronts an array of diplomatic and security challenges in East Asia. The most serious one, of course, is North Korea’s continuing drive to join the global nuclear weapons club....
View ArticleWhither U.S.-China-Japan Relations
On my modest office “power wall” of photos and career memorabilia are two items that lend some perspective on U.S.-China relations, as well as, I immodestly admit, my early career. One is a framed...
View ArticleWhy Japan and China Could Accidentally End Up at War
The Chinese government on Tuesday continued to deny that a Chinese frigate locked its radar on a Japanese destroyer earlier this year. The denial comes a day after Tokyo-based Kyodo News quoted unnamed...
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China’s Maritime Disputes in the East and South China Seas
China’s maritime disputes with other states over territorial sovereignty and resource claims in the East and South China Seas constitute one of three related but distinct categories of maritime...
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China-Japan Island Row in Dangerous Waters
Nikkei recently published the article “Verifying Nationalization of the Senkaku Islands“, analyzing Shintaro Ishihara’s announcement in Washington of Tokyo’s intention to “buy the Senkaku Islands” and...
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Abe to Xi: Shall We Dance?
Japan and China both have new leaders, and thus an opportunity exists to reduce tensions that erupted last summer over disputed islands in the East China Sea. Tensions ratcheted up even further early...
View ArticleOvercoming East Asia’s Sovereignty Disputes
China’s recent elevation of its claim to the Diaoyu Islands to a “core interest” has made the prospect of resolving its sovereignty dispute with Japan, which governs the islands, even trickier. Indeed,...
View ArticleUS Needs A Rethinking of Its Japan Policy
With the return of Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, many are commenting on the strain Abe has placed on the United States. It is clear that recent Japanese policies are bringing US—Japanese policies...
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Japan’s Containment Strategy against China
Japan has begun to play a more vigorous role in East Asia’s security affairs, and China is responding with a mixture of wariness and outright hostility. That development puts the United States in an...
View ArticleWhat Should China Do in a Period of Frequent Frictions?
In recent years, China has run into more security challenges and increasing international pressure, thus entering a period of frequent frictions with the outside world. This is a necessary stage for a...
View ArticleChina’s New Normal in the South China Sea
Two things stand out from China’s recent conduct in the South China Sea. One, China’s leaders are men in a hurry. They mean to settle the disputes over the islets, shoals, and reefs dotting that...
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After Election Victory, Japanese Prime Minister Abe Must Accept Change
Japanese Prime Minister Abe Shinzo’s election victory may have won some political security for himself, but some of Abe’s key policy initiatives—most notably revising Japan’s “Peace Constitution” –now...
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