Japan's "Positive Pacifism": Issues of Historical Memory in Contemporary Foreign Policy

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has shown himself to be a staunch defender of the US-Japanese relationship and of US interests, resolved to place Japan's Self Defense Forces at US disposal and to construct large new military facilities for them on US as well as Japanese soil. Yet he refuses to accomm...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:The Brown journal of world affairs 2014-04, Vol.20 (2), p.73-91
Main Author: McCormack, Gavan
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Abe, Shinzo
Armed forces
Asian history
Asians
Foreign relations
Historical Memory in IR
History
Japan
Japanese history
Memory
Military policy
National security
Pacifism
Prime ministers
Secretaries of state
Self defense
Territorial claims
United States
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Summary:Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has shown himself to be a staunch defender of the US-Japanese relationship and of US interests, resolved to place Japan's Self Defense Forces at US disposal and to construct large new military facilities for them on US as well as Japanese soil. Yet he refuses to accommodate US pressures over identity and history or to concede that there is anything to negotiate with neighboring countries over territorial disputes. As a result, Japan faces intensifying friction not only with its neighbors but also with the US. Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs Daniel Russel spoke of the significant challenge the US faced in helping Japan to deal with historical issues that create tensions, and even estrangement sometimes, with its neighbors. A sovereign nation would never seek help in deciding how to interpret its own history, however, and in this case, reflecting the peculiarity of the US-Japan relationship, by helping Russel appeared to mean something more akin to exacting submission.
ISSN:1080-0786
2472-3347