Japan’s evolving relations with the Global South

Source– The post is based on the article “Japan’s evolving relations with the Global South” published in The Indian Express on 15th February 2023.

Syllabus: GS2- International relations

Relevance– Changing foreign policy priorities of the countries

News– Japan is now emphasising on the Global South amidst a major transformation of its foreign and security policies under Kishida’s leadership.

How has Japan shown impressive leadership in the world of strategic ideas in recent times?

Japan has constructed and popularised the Indo-Pacific construct over the last decade and more.

Former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe first articulated the idea of the Indo-Pacific in an address to the Indian Parliament in August 2007. He called for a coalition of Asian democracies that eventually took the form of the Quadrilateral forum.

Japan’s Prime Minister Fumio Kishida has now taken the initiative to raise the Global South to the top of the G7 agenda.

In a major policy speech in Washington last month, Japan’s PM Kishida cautioned other G7 countries on the dangers of neglecting the Global South. Kishida is conscious that the West has neglected political engagement with the Global South in recent decades.

Kishida is firm in his conviction that the G7 can’t “impose its values” on the Global South. Kishida has told his G7 partners that we need to be more committed to our values.There is a need to have a firm understanding of historical and cultural backgrounds of the global south.

Japan now wants the G7 to reconnect with the Global South in more fundamental ways. Kishida believes that greater cooperation between the G7 and the developing countries is also critical for addressing the current global challenges.

What are the major changes in foreign and security policies of Japan under Kishida’s leadership?

Kishida is among the few leaders in Asia who has clearly articulated the implications of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine a year ago this month. If unilateral change of the status quo by force is unchallenged, it will happen elsewhere in the world, including Asia.

Kishida has announced sweeping reform in Japan’s defence policy. This involved doubling the defence spending to 2% of the GDP over the next 5 years, building a large missile force, boosting cybersecurity capabilities, and taking larger responsibilities for regional security and capacity building in the Indo-Pacific.

Japan has adopted new realist diplomacy. Japan now recognises the essential relationship between diplomacy and defence.

How is Kishida’s new approach beneficial from the Indian perspective?

Kishida’s new approach provides the basis for more substantive and wider collaboration between Delhi and Tokyo in the developing regions of the world.

India should welcome Kishida’s new interest in the Global South. Japan’s initiatives on the Indo-Pacific and the Quad have broken the misperception of Asia as being merely Sino-centric.

The India-Japan partnership on the Global South might help overcome the traditional divides between East and West as well as North and South.