Abe determined to keep Japan a tier-one power - Lowy Institute Analysis

SYDNEY - Prime Minister Shinzo Abe is determined to keep Japan a tier-one power in Asia and the world, argues a new Lowy Institute analysis by prominent US Japan expert and Lowy Institute non-resident fellow Dr Michael J. Green.

In Japan is back: Unbundling Asia’s grand strategy, Dr Green notes that the inaugural Japanese national security strategy just released (December 17) confirms the main elements of Abe’s plan to maintain Japanese strength. He also explains that Abe’s plan shows significant continuity with previous Japanese governments, and much of it will likely continue beyond Abe’s time as Prime Minister.
‘His broad strategic vision encompasses steps to strengthen the economy and reform national security institutions … while strengthening the US-Japan alliance and alignment with other maritime democracies like Australia to balance a rising China’,  says Dr Green.
Dr Green was a senior Asia adviser to the George W. Bush Administration, serving in various capacities in the US National Security Council from 2001-2005. He is currently Senior Vice-President for Asia and Japan Chair at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington DC.
In his Lowy Institute analysis, he identifies challenges ahead for Abe’s strategy. He notes that it remains to be seen whether Abe’s government has the stomach for certain fundamental economic and strategic reforms. Another challenge is that Abe’s strategy for co-operation with other maritime democracies has not included South Korea and that Japan needs help in dealing with serious tensions linked to Abe’s narrative about history.
Dr Green concludes that it is in the interests of the United States, Australia and others to help Japan resist possible Chinese coercion, and that doing so will make it easier to encourage Japan build a relationship of stability and ‘reassurance’ with Beijing. www.lowyinstitute.org (ATI).