Prime Minister Aso Taro is a firm believer in "values-oriented diplomacy," the use of Japan's foreign policy tools to promote the spread of "universal values" like democracy and human rights.As foreign minister under Prime Minister Abe Shinzo, he spoke of Japan's role in creating an "arc of freedom and prosperity," a belt of what he …
Tag: ASEAN
The new Fukuda doctrine
On Thursday of last week, Prime Minister Fukuda gave a keynote foreign policy address at the fourteenth annual International Conference on the Future of Asia, hosted by Nikkei in Tokyo.Not for the first time Mr. Fukuda gave me reason to lament his political troubles at home, as he gave a speech that was stunning in …
What does Abe’s trip mean for Japan and Asia?
Much is being made of Prime Minister Abe's trip to India, where he is scheduled to address India's parliament today.The trip will likely feature lots of talk of the values shared by Japan and India, naturally to contrast both Asian powers with China.I remain less than convinced that Japan and India will be able to …
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Pooling reserves in Asia
The Yomiuri Shimbun's lead editorial today focuses on an agreement reached at the annual meeting of the Asian Development Bank (ABD) to pool currency reserves among the ASEAN + 3 countries so to be able to provide liquidity in the event of a crisis.Building on the Chiang Mai Initiative, an earlier agreement in ASEAN + …
Tobias S. Harris 