www射-国产免费一级-欧美福利-亚洲成人福利-成人一区在线观看-亚州成人

Global EditionASIA 中文雙語Fran?ais
Opinion
Home / Opinion / Cai Hong

Abe has limited options to break the deadlock with DPRK

By Cai Hong | China Daily | Updated: 2018-06-25 08:07
Share
Share - WeChat
Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe speaks to media after the news conference by the U.S. President Donald Trump. [Photo/VCG]

Forgetting about putting "maximum pressure" on the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, Japan is mulling several proposals to organize a meeting between Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and DPRK top leader Kim Jong-un.

Plan A: a possible Abe-Kim summit in September when the two leaders are expected to attend an economic forum in Vladivostok in Russia's Far East. Russian President Vladimir Putin has invited Kim to pay a state visit to Russia in conjunction with the Vladivostok forum. Abe has said he, too, will attend the annual event.

Plan B: the United Nations General Assembly gathering in late September could be another option. Japan believes there is a possibility that UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres will invite Kim to the UN General Assembly meeting.

In fact, contact between the two countries has already begun. Fumio Shimizu, deputy director general at Japanese Foreign Ministry's Asian and Oceanian Affairs Bureau, held talks with DPRK officials at a security forum in Ulan Bator on June 14.

The issue of Japanese nationals abducted by the DPRK in the 1970s and 1980s would top the agenda if Abe and Kim were to hold oneon-one talks. Nuclear program and intercontinental ballistic missiles aside, Tokyo is wary of Pyongyang's shorter-range missiles that can hit Japan and are not mentioned in the joint statement inked by US President Donald Trump and Kim in Singapore on June 12.

Japan, it seems, is nervous about the new developments after the Trump-Kim summit-for instance, the United States and the Republic of Korea agreeing to suspend their joint military exercises slated for August.

Although Japanese Defense Minister Itsunori Onodera said he understood the US-ROK decision to suspend their August drills, he stressed the need for Washington and Seoul to continue their other joint drills, because they are "important pillars" for maintaining regional peace and stability. He also emphasized that plans for Japan-US joint exercises remain unchanged.

The detente on the Korean Peninsula has not prompted Japan to lower its guard against the DPRK, as Onodera said Tokyo's plan to introduce the land-based Aegis Ashore missile defense system in fiscal 2023 remains unaltered. Japan has been using the DPRK as an imminent security threat to justify its constantly rising defense budgets.

In May, Japan's ruling Liberal Democratic Party called for doubling the country's defense spending from its post-World War II cap of 1 percent of GDP. Japan already ranks eighth in global defense spending, with its 2018 budget of 5.2 trillion yen ($45.9 billion) being 0.9 percent of GDP. Doubling this would make Japan the world's third-largest defense spender, behind only the US and China.

Japan has already passed a law to allow its quasi-military Self-Defense Forces to defend its allies in a limited role in conflicts abroad. Previously, the SDF's overseas operations were limited to humanitarian roles.

The Trump administration's cancellation of the joint drills and possible reduction of US troops in the ROK may even prompt Japan to question the US guarantee of security, and give an excuse to the already proactive Japanese nationalists to strengthen the country's quasi-military so that Japan can step out of the US security umbrella.

Abe is poised to bid for a third term as LDP leader. If he wins the election in September, he will have more time to implement his policies. And how the Korean Peninsula denuclearization process proceeds will likely substantially affect Japan's defense policy.

Demanding particular attention is the national defense program guidelines Japan is expected to upgrade by the end of the year.

Moreover, as part of his first East Asia trip after the Trump-Kim summit, US Defense Secretary Jim Mattis will visit Japan this week, during which he and Onodera are expected to compare notes about US and Japanese policies.

Tokyo does not want to remain a peripheral player now that Pyongyang is improving relations with the outside world. But given the limited options, Abe may not be able to break the diplomatic deadlock with the DPRK.

The author is China Daily Tokyo bureau chief. 

Most Viewed in 24 Hours
Top
BACK TO THE TOP
English
Copyright 1995 - . All rights reserved. The content (including but not limited to text, photo, multimedia information, etc) published in this site belongs to China Daily Information Co (CDIC). Without written authorization from CDIC, such content shall not be republished or used in any form. Note: Browsers with 1024*768 or higher resolution are suggested for this site.
License for publishing multimedia online 0108263

Registration Number: 130349
FOLLOW US
主站蜘蛛池模板: 亚洲加勒比久久88色综合 | 久久青青草视频 | 国产成人精品自拍 | 一级中国毛片 | 日韩久草| 欧美成年黄网站色视频 | 久青草视频在线 | 国产婷婷一区二区在线观看 | 77yyxf影音先锋| 成人毛片一区二区三区 | 国产一区二区三区亚洲综合 | 久久成人免费视频 | 国产在线视频精品视频免费看 | 国产亚洲免费观看 | 91青青国产在线观看免费 | 加勒比久久综合 | 足恋玩丝袜脚视频免费网站 | 日本www色视频成人免费网站 | 男女男免费视频网站国产 | 免费一级欧美大片视频在线 | 亚洲伊人成人 | 国产精品久久久久久爽爽爽 | 国产最新精品 | 一区二区三区在线视频观看 | 国产三级做爰在线观看 | 欧美freesex10一13黑人 | 国内高清久久久久久久久 | 亚洲欧美日本国产综合在线 | 日韩午夜在线观看 | 99毛片| 亚洲人成影院在线高清 | 亚洲成人aa| 欧美一级毛片免费看 | 97久久曰曰久久久 | 韩国美女一区二区 | 日韩精品在线免费观看 | 国产在线91精品天天更新 | 一级特级aaa毛片 | 一级视频在线观看 | 一本色道久久综合 | 91精品宅男在线观看 |