Adjusting to the New International Order

Abstract

Japan, like all great powers in the post-Cold War world, is seeking a new role. But for Japan the challenges posed by the new disorder are particularly acute and the internal process of decision-making is especially unsuited to a swift adjustment. Well before the end of the Cold War, Japan knew that it had to become more ‘international’: that is to say Japan had to become not just an economic superpower, but also take on political and even military roles commensurate with its economic influence. Japan’s search for a more normal role, unlike that of Germany which was tied into European alliances, was more lonely, and more dependent on the single bilateral relationship with the United States. In the Japanese context, a more ‘normal’ role was abnormally hard to define. In the analysis that follows, we identify some of the longer-term geopolitical realities of Japan’s international position before turning to a brief analysis of the impact of the major features of change in the new international relations.