With U.S. President Joe Biden missing in action, Japan’s Prime Minister Fumio Kishida has proposed an Indo-Pacific initiative to counter Communist China’s growing military and economic clout.
As China’s increasing military might threatens neighboring countries and endangers the freedom of navigation in the region, Japan unveiled the “Free and Open Indo-Pacific” (FOIP) plan to strengthen regional cooperation.
The plan proposed by Tokyo aims to complement the U.S.-led Quad, a four-nation alliance bolstered under President Donald Trump’s watch. The Quad comprises the U.S., Japan, India, and Australia.
Japan pledged $75 billion in global investment as a counterweight to Beijing’s “Belt and Road” initiative that extends Chinese influence globally. “Japan’s Prime Minister Fumio Kishida on Monday announced a new plan to promote an open and free Indo-Pacific, promising billions of dollars in investment to help economies across the region in everything from industry to disaster prevention,” Reuters reported. “The plan he announced in New Delhi is seen as Tokyo’s bid to forge stronger ties with countries in South and Southeast Asia to counter China’s growing assertiveness there.”
The Associated Press reported Japan’s ambitious plan:
Japan’s Prime Minister Fumio Kishida on Monday invited his Indian counterpart Narendra Modi for the Group of Seven summit in May and announced action plans for a new Indo-Pacific initiative aimed at countering China’s influence in the region.Kishida, who is on a two-day trip to India, said he hopes to promote a vision of free and open Indo-Pacific, a Tokyo-led initiative for greater security and economic cooperation that is geared toward curbing Beijing’s growing assertiveness. It includes Japan’s assistance to emerging economies, support for maritime security, a provision of coast guard patrol boats and equipment and other infrastructure cooperation.It fits with Japan’s new national security strategy adopted in December under which Tokyo Japan is deploying long-range cruise missiles to strengthen its strike-back capability, and using development aid more strategically in support of like-minded countries. (…)China’s territorial claims in the East China and South China seas have rattled Beijing’s smaller neighbors in Southeast Asia as well as Japan, which is also facing threats from North Korea’s nuclear and missile development. The relationship between New Delhi and Beijing also has deteriorated since 2020, when Indian and Chinese troops clashed along their undefined border in the Himalayan Ladakh region, leaving 20 Indian and four Chinese soldiers dead.
It is significant that Japan’s prime minister unveiled his strategic plan during his visit to New Delhi. China has been at loggerheads with both India and Japan over territorial disputes.
China has made territorial claims along the 2100-mile border it shares with India, resulting in deadly military clashes in recent years. Beijing disputes Japan’s control over several islands in the East China Sea.
In a recent article, The Japan Times newspaper described the shared threat posed by China to both countries:
Modi — who leads the world’s largest democracy — and Kishida have both voiced concerns over China’s moves near their claimed territory.In recent years, tensions have surged between China and India over a disputed Himalayan border known as the Line of Actual control. New Delhi has accused Beijing of attempting to “unilaterally change the status quo” with repeated Chinese encroachments over that mountainous border, sparking clashes and threatening to erupt into all-out conflict between the two Asian behemoths.Tokyo has also faced off with Beijing over the Japanese-controlled, Chinese-claimed Senkaku Islands in the East China Sea, while also criticizing China’s military moves in the disputed South China Sea — home to crucial sea lanes that carry a large chunk of global trade. Japan has also become more outspoken about the need for “peace and stability” in the Taiwan Strait after China lobbed missiles over Taipei and into waters near Okinawa Prefecture’s Nansei Islands last year.
The Japanese leader’s visit to India came as China’s President Xi Jinping met with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin in Moscow. Xi’s visit reinforces the Chinese commitment to back Putin as Russia’s invasion of Ukraine grinds into the second year. Under President Biden’s watch, the China-Russia axis has emerged as an opposing bloc to the U.S. and its Western allies.
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