Japan seeks NATO help to counter China
In this edition, Japan’s decision to remove its defense spending limits is intended to counter China in the Indo-Pacific.
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THE STORY
Ahead of the G7 summit last month, on May 10, Japan’s foreign minister, Yoshimasa Hayashi, confirmed that NATO would very likely open a liaison office in the country, the first of its kind in Asia. “Since the aggression by Russia on Ukraine,” Hayashi said, “the world has become more unstable.” Regional security in the Indo-Pacific in the wake of the war, he added, means that “cooperation between us in East Asia and NATO is increasingly important.” The G7 summit resulted in the world’s seven richest countries agreeing that they needed to “de-risk” their economic and trade relationship with China.
Since January, Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida has rallied support from Western nations by pointing to China’s militarization of the East and South China Seas, Beijing’s threats against Taiwan and increased nuclear testing by North Korea. NATO's decision to establish a liaison office in Japan represents an extension of the Western alliance system into the Indo-Pacific region, something that has broader implications for global politics.