Recent events in Asia-Pacific underline the pivotal importance of the China-Japan-U.S. relationship for the future evolution of the region. In an important follow-up to their path-breaking 1996 assessment, China-Japan-US: Managing the Trilateral Relationship, the three original co-authors review the underlying challenges confronting the development of this "vital triangle." Recent developments —notably, the accidental bombing of the Chinese embassy in Belgrade, Taiwan's apparent moves toward greater independence, Japanese displeasure at President Clinton's failure to visit Tokyo after his trip to China, Japan's decision to pursue R& D on theater missile defense, and China's heavy-handed use of its historical grievances with Japan —have made management of the trilateral relationship even more challenging. Yet, the basic imperatives for deeper cooperation remain essentially unchanged. Continuing uncertainties on the Korean peninsula, recent nuclear developments in South Asia, political instabilities in Southeast Asia, and a general weakening of regional institutions in the wake of the Asian financial crisis require basic cooperation between China, Japan, and the United States. This volume offers indispensable insights on the evolving complexities of the China-Japan-U.S. relationship.

From its insistence that Japan should favour diplomatic normalization with the Republic of China over the People’s Republic of China in 1952, through its role, via the Security Treaty, of keeping the ‘cap in the bottle’ of Japanese militarism, to weighing in on the Diaoyu/Senkaku islands dispute between China and Japan, the United States has played a pivotal, and at times controversial, role in the development of China-Japan relations since the end of World War II. By extension, US influence on China-Taiwan and Taiwan-Japan relations, in addition to its impact on the efforts of various actors to construct a Northeast Asian regional community, continues to pose important questions about the nature of the US role in East Asia in the 21st century. This volume provides a multi-faceted overview of the nature of America’s interaction in East Asia since the end of the war, and highlights the obstacles to improved bilateral and regional integration. The contributors offer a range of perspectives from their respective US, European, and East Asian vantage points, and point to the ongoing and prominent involvement of the US in the region for the foreseeable future.

Many policy analysts believe China-Japan-U.S. relations to be the key triangle in world politics of the 21st century. The ten essays in this book probe the interrelations of the three major powers of the Asia Pacific region. Experts from China, Japan, and the United States examine the evolving nature of trilateral relations by analyzing the impact on their interactions of such international events as the Asian financial crisis, the situation on the Korean peninsula, and the new nuclear arms race in South Asia occasioned by India's and Pakistan's nuclear tests. Recognizing that the continuing prosperity and security of Asia Pacific is largely contingent upon enhanced cooperation between China, Japan, and the United States, the authors examine the ways in which the three countries can collaborate to resolve specific troublesome regional issues and ways in which bilateral relations among the three can be improved. The Asian financial crisis, the South Asian nuclear tests, and the exchange of visits between President Bill Clinton and President Jiang Zemin appear to have drastically changed the context for discussion of trilateral relations. The warming of Sino-U.S. relations in particular has caused some analysts to question whether in the next century the United States might make a strategic choice to downplay its close security and economic relations with Japan in favor of a broadened and deepened relationship with China. China's rise, particularly if it is perceived as having come about at Japan's expense, will call into question the objective of trilateral dialogue: Is it to develop equidistant relations, or to reinforce current bilateral relationships while maintaining the status quo? These new dimensions of the China-Japan-U.S. relationship point to the importance of developing a sustained trilateral dialogue to manage the psychology of trilateral relations, for the benefit of the three countries and the region, as well.

Japan is a significant partner for the United States in a number of foreign policy areas, particularly in U.S. security priorities, which range from hedging against Chinese military modernization to countering threats from North Korea. The alliance facilitates the forward deployment of about 50,000 U.S. troops and other U.S. military assets based in Japan. In addition, Japan's participation in the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) talks could enhance the credibility and viability of the proposed trade pact, which is a core component of Obama Administration efforts to "rebalance" U.S. foreign policy priorities toward the Asia-Pacific region. After years of turmoil, Japanese politics has entered a period of stability with the December 2012 and December 2014 election victories of current Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and his Liberal Democratic Party (LDP). The Japanese constitution does not require new elections until 2018. The LDP's recent election may have given Abe some political capital to pursue the more controversial initiatives of his agenda, such as joining the proposed TPP trade pact and increasing the Japanese military's capabilities and flexibility. The political continuity in Tokyo has allowed Abe to reinforce his agenda of revitalizing the Japanese economy and boosting the U.S.-Japan alliance, both goals that the Obama Administration has actively supported. On the other hand, comments and actions on controversial historical issues by Abe and his Cabinet have raised concern that Tokyo could upset regional relations in ways that hurt U.S. interests. Abe is known for his strong nationalist views. Abe's approach to issues like the so-called "comfort women" forced prostitutes from the World War II era, Japanese history textbooks that critics claim whitewash Japanese atrocities, visits to the Yasukuni Shrine that honors Japan's war dead and includes Class A war criminals, and statements on territorial disputes in the Sea of Japan and the East China Sea are all ongoing points of tension in the region. To many U.S. observers, Abe brings both positive and negative qualities to the alliance, at once bolstering it but also renewing historical animosities that could disturb the regional security environment. The upcoming 70th anniversary of the end of World War II could be a sensitive time for Asia as Japan and other countries reflect on a difficult period that remains politically potent today. U.S.-Japan defense cooperation has improved and evolved in recent decades as the allies adjust to new security challenges, such as the ballistic missile threat from North Korea and the confrontation between Japan and China over disputed islets. The government's 2014 decision to relax Japan's prohibition on participating in collective self-defense activities could allow the Japanese military to play a greater role in global security, but domestic legislation is needed for implementation. Despite overcoming a major hurdle in 2013 to relocate the controversial Futenma base on Okinawa, many local politicians and activists are opposed to the plans to realign U.S. forces. In addition, the U.S. Congress has expressed concern about the cost of the plans. Japan is one of the United States' most important economic partners. Outside of North America, it is the United States' second-largest export market and second-largest source of imports. Japanese firms are the United States' second-largest source of foreign direct investment, and Japanese investors are the second-largest foreign holders of U.S. treasuries. Japan, the United States, and 10 other countries are participating in the TPP free trade agreement negotiations. If successful, the negotiations could reinvigorate a bilateral economic relationship by addressing long-standing, difficult issues in the trade relationship.

No country feels China's rise more deeply than Japan. Through intricate case studies of visits by Japanese politicians to the Yasukuni Shrine, conflicts over the boundaries of economic zones in the East China Sea, concerns about food safety, and strategies of island defense, Sheila A. Smith explores the policy issues testing the Japanese government as it tries to navigate its relationship with an advancing China. Smith finds that Japan's interactions with China extend far beyond the negotiations between diplomats and include a broad array of social actors intent on influencing the Sino-Japanese relationship. Some of the tensions complicating Japan's encounters with China, such as those surrounding the Yasukuni Shrine or territorial disputes, have deep roots in the postwar era, and political advocates seeking a stronger Japanese state organize themselves around these causes. Other tensions manifest themselves during the institutional and regulatory reform of maritime boundary and food safety issues. Smith scrutinizes the role of the Japanese government in coping with contention as China's influence grows and Japanese citizens demand more protection. Underlying the government's efforts is Japan's insecurity about its own capacity for change and its waning status as the leading economy in Asia. For many, China's rise means Japan's decline, and Smith suggests how Japan can maintain its regional and global clout as confidence in its postwar diplomatic and security approach diminishes.

This book examines the transformation of the Sino-Japanese relationship since 1989.

A Financial Times “Summer Books” Selection “Will become required reading.” —Times Literary Supplement “Elegantly written...with a confidence that comes from decades of deep research on the topic, illustrating how influence and power have waxed and waned between the two countries.” —Rana Mitter, Financial Times China and Japan have cultural and political connections that stretch back fifteen hundred years, but today their relationship is strained. China’s military buildup deeply worries Japan, while Japan’s brutal occupation of China in World War II remains an open wound. In recent years both countries have insisted that the other side must openly address the flashpoints of the past before relations can improve. Boldly tackling the most contentious chapters in this long and tangled relationship, Ezra Vogel uses the tools of a master historian to examine key turning points in Sino–Japanese history. Gracefully pivoting from past to present, he argues that for the sake of a stable world order, these two Asian giants must reset their relationship. “A sweeping, often fascinating, account...Impressively researched and smoothly written.” —Japan Times “Vogel uses the powerful lens of the past to frame contemporary Chinese–Japanese relations...[He] suggests that over the centuries—across both the imperial and the modern eras—friction has always dominated their relations.” —Sheila A. Smith, Foreign Affairs