Japan-Australia security ties deepen: A response to China?
Japan-Australia security ties deepen: A response to China?
WRITTEN BY KYOKO HATAKEYAMA
25 August 2021
Japan’s security relationship with Australia has finally started deepening. Although the Declaration on Security Cooperation was signed as early as 2007, it did not lead to an immediate growth in defence ties between Canberra and Tokyo. However, recent developments show that relations are now in full gear with the two countries agreeing in principle to conclude a Reciprocal Access Agreement (RAA) in November 2020. The agreement is remarkable since it would set a legal framework to enable reciprocal visits of either state’s armed forces for training or operational purposes. With the RAA’s conclusion, Australia looks set to become the first country after the United States, whose armed forces would be allowed to visit Japanese soil without a case-by-case invitation.
The defence relationship has also been buttressed by promoting joint training and exercises. For instance, Japanese troops have participated in major multilateral exercises such as the Talisman Sabre exercise held in Australia. In 2019, Japanese and Australian air forces held their first joint Exercise Bushido Guardian in Japan. According to an anonymous retired SDF officer quoted by Asahi Shimbun, although the exercises serve little to improve their immediate defence capabilities, they are intended to be highly symbolic and show unity between ‘middle powers’.
A more active and sustained defence partnership between Tokyo and Canberra could serve to supplement Washington’s commitments and military burdens across the Indo-Pacific region.
Moreover, Japan has created a framework to permit its Self-Defence Force (SDF) to protect Australian military assets, if only in peacetime and upon request from the Australian Defence Force whenever the appropriate opportunity arises. Both states have also agreed to promote cooperation between their coast guard authorities. The security relationship between Japan and Australia has become more substantial, turning into a “quasi” alliance.
Concerns about China’s growing assertiveness
Japan and Australia’s security relationship has largely developed due to their shared concerns about China's growing assertiveness in the East and South China Seas, which signals a challenge to the current US-led regional order in the Indo-Pacific. Claiming sovereignty, China continues to intrude on Japan's territorial and contiguous waters near the Senkaku Islands, administered by Tokyo since the US returned them in 1972. Australia too is concerned with China's growing influence over the Pacific Islands, such as Vanuatu and the Solomon Islands, countries Canberra regards as being in its backyard.
Australia was also vexed by China’s attempts to intervene and influence domestic politics, for instance by installing an agent in the federal parliament, which proved unsuccessful. Although Australia had taken a more balanced approach towards China due to economic concerns, the allegations pushed the Australian government to shift its policy towards Beijing, resulting in a more substantial security relationship with Japan. Canberra and Tokyo’s apprehensions were well illustrated by the statements made at the 9th Foreign and Defence Ministerial Consultations (2+2) held online in June 2021. Both states emphasised the importance of a rules-based order to promote a free, open, inclusive, and prosperous Indo-Pacific region. They also expressed serious concerns about the situation in the East and South China Seas and China's Coast Guard Law, which allowed the Chinese Coast Guard to use force against foreign ships operating in waters claimed by Beijing.
Interestingly both states also confirmed the importance of Taiwan's peace and stability. This was the second time this year that Japanese leaders mentioned the Taiwan issue; the first time was during the 2021 Japan-US summit meeting between Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga and President Joe Biden. Japan's references to Taiwan's peace and stability with both the US and Australia after a 52-year interval imply growing security ties among the three states and their increasing concerns over Beijing’s intentions in the Taiwan Strait.
Uncertainty in the Indo-Pacific and Japan’s normalisation
In addition to China’s assertiveness, an uncertain security architecture in the Indo-Pacific region is also accelerating security cooperation between Japan and Australia. Although the United States had hitherto maintained its economic and military predominance in the Indo-Pacific, Washington’s supremacy, both in its relative diplomatic and economic strength started to decline due to China’s dramatic economic growth. The data speaks for itself. In 1960, the United States economy accounted for about 40 per cent of the total world GDP while China accounted for only 4 per cent. However, sixty years later it plunged to just 24.7 per cent, while China’s GDP now accounts for 17.4 per cent. Although the US remains the most significant economic power globally, the power gap between the US and China is shrinking.
Moreover, by pursuing an ‘America First’ policy, Donald Trump’s administration eroded both Canberra and Tokyo’s trust in American commitment to the region. Trump’s decision to withdraw from the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) was also a source of disappointment for Japanese policymakers. Since Japan regarded the TPP as a key framework to dilute China’s growing economic influence in the Indo-Pacific, the decision made the Shinzo Abe administration wary of US engagement and its leadership in the region. In contrast to the US’ declining presence in the economic area, regional economic integration seems to be augmented by the start of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership, in which China is the dominant member, and from which the United States is absent.
Admittedly, the United States under both Donald Trump and Joe Biden has shown its intention to commit itself to regional security by conducting frequent Freedom of Navigation Operations in the South China Sea and confirming its commitment to the defence of the Senkaku Islands. It has also increased the presence of the Marine Rotational Force-Darwin in Australia. However, given the narrowing power gap between China and the United States, and looming Chinese influence, whether the United States will continue to commit to the security of both Japan and Australia and be a leader in the region is uncertain.
Under this uncertainty, it is reasonable that Japan and Australia look to each other as security partners that share liberal values. Since Japan’s security and trade relations with South Korea have soured due to historical issues, Australia is the only option for Japan to look to within the broader US alliance system. The deepening security relationship between the two countries is certainly welcome news for the United States, especially for the Biden administration that is pursuing cooperation with like-minded states. A more active and sustained defence partnership between Tokyo and Canberra could serve to supplement Washington’s commitments and military burdens across the Indo-Pacific region. The successful and speedy conclusion of the RAA is awaited to firmly institutionalise their defence ties.
Given Japan’s longstanding hesitance about its involvement in external security affairs, one may wonder if promoting defence cooperation with Australia indicates a major policy shift. However, Japan's deepening ties with Australia are neither a departure from the past nor a mere response to the changing security architecture in the 21st Century. Rather it illustrates a process that started as early as the 1990s. Japan’s shift in security policy, exemplified by its participation in United Nations peacekeeping operations, the deployment of the JSDF in the War on Terror and the adoption of the legislation for peace and security, shows that Japan has been heading towards a so-called ‘normal country’ for some time across multiple administrations. The goal of this evolution is to place Tokyo in an international grouping of like-minded states. Expanding its scope of military action to contribute to global peace and stability, while maintaining a pacifist tradition by limiting its use of force to self-defence, will enable Japan to become a full-fledged member of the international community.
Japan’s deepening security cooperation with Australia is one such process to participate in a collective security system that began operating in the post-Cold War era. Beijing’s assertiveness in the maritime domain and the uncertainty in the region has only encouraged Japan to accelerate this process.
DISCLAIMER: All views expressed are those of the writer and do not necessarily represent that of the 9DASHLINE.com platform.
Author biography
Kyoko Hatakeyama is Professor of International Relations at the Graduate School of the University of Niigata Prefecture. She is the author of Japan’s Evolving Security Policy: Militarisation within a Pacifist Tradition, Routledge, 2021. She tweets @kyokohat. Image credit: Wikimedia.