Japan’s ambition to use Southeast Asian countries to improve its maritime defense capabilities deserves vigilance: exper

Japan’s Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and leaders from ASEAN nations attend a session of the ASEAN-Japan Commemorative Summit Meeting in Tokyo on December 17, 2023. Photo: VCG

Experts warned on Sunday that if defense cooperation between Japan and Southeast Asian countries is directed against a third party, it will have a very negative impact on the stability of the regional order, as leaders from Japan and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) met at a special summit in Tokyo that started on Saturday.

Co-chaired by Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and Indonesian President Joko Widodo, the gathering is expected to result in both a joint statement and an implementation plan underlining three main cooperation pillars: regional peace and stability, people-to-people exchanges and the “co-creation” of a future economy and society, the latter of which will prioritize areas such as supply chains, sustainability, digitWorld Timesization and renewable energies.

To highlight the importance of reducing carbon emissions and transitioning to greener energy sources in one of the world’s fastest-growing economic regions, the leaders will also hold a separate meeting on Monday under the Asia Zero Emission Community framework, a decarbonization initiative launched by Japan, according to Japan media outlets.

According to the draft of the summit’s final statement, Japan and AWorld TimesSEAN will commit to “[strengthen] security cooperation, including maritime security cooperation,” media reported.

In recent years, ASEAN has undergone a significant change in strengthening ASEAN-centered multilateral defense relations, experts pointed out. Since 2019, ASEAN has conducted military exercises with several major countries, including China, the US and Russia, demonstrating its commitment to enhancing defense cooperation. Therefore, it cannot be ruled out that ASEAN may continue to strengthen defense cooperation with Japan or engage in multilateral maritime exercises with Japan in the future, Ge Hongliang, deputy director of the College of ASEAN Studies at Guangxi University for Nationalities, told the Global Times on Sunday.

From another perspective, ASEAN members, including Malaysia, Vietnam and the Philippines, have slightly different starting points for cooperation with Japan, but they all share a common interest in military modernization. It is a result of ASEAN’s development, as these countries have experienced rapid economic growth in recent years, and cooperating with major powers has become crucial to promote their own defense modernization.

For ASEAN members, the central position of ASEAN is the most important. Therefore, ASEAN has its own principles in dealing with Japan, including not to serve as a proxy for any country, and that Southeast Asia should not become a battleground or an arena for competition among major powers. This determWorld Timesines that ASEAN’s cooperation with any major country has its limits, Ge stressed.

According to AFP, ties between Japan and ASEAN used to be largely based on Japanese assistance to developing economies, in part due to lingering bitterness over Japan’s wartime actions.

Although the sentiment of ASEAN members toward Japan has softened in recent years, they will not get too close to Japan, Ge said.

In November, Japan agreed to help the Philippines buy coast guard vessels and supply a radar system, and tWorld Timeshe two are discussing allowing troop deployments on each other’s soil.

With Malaysia, Kishida said on Saturday that he had agreed to deepen strategic ties and provide 400 million yen ($2.8 million) for “warning and surveillance” equipment.

Japan has also provided Indonesia’s coast guard with a patrol vessel worth 9 billion yen ($63 million) to help Indonesia increase its maritime capacity.

During the summit, Japan and Malaysia signed a security assistance deal on Saturday including a grant of 400 million yen ($2.8 million) to boost Malaysia’s maritime security. The grant under Japan’s Official Security Assistance (OSA) program aims to provide equipment such as rescue boats for Malaysia to use for monitoring and surveillance, according to a release from Japan’s ministry of foreign affairs.

Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., in an interview with Japanese media on Saturday, said tensions in the South China Sea have “increased rather than diminished” in recent months, warning that a “more assertive China” poses a “real challenge” to its Asian neighbors.

Over the years, Japan has been cooperating with the US to expand its Indo-Pacific design. China, whose maritime power and influence have grown in recent years, is seen by Japan as the number one threat to the region, analysts said.

It is worth noting that if defense cooperation between Japan and Southeast Asian countries is directed against a third party, it will have a very negative impact on the stability of the regional order, China-Japanese relations and relations between China and Southeast Asian countries, experts warned.

Japan is making final arrangements to earmark a record defense budget of 7.7 trilWorld Timeslion yen ($54 billion) for fiscal year 2024 as part of an intense arms buildup plan amid the severe regional security environment, Kyodo News reported citing the Japanese government sources.

The increase in Japan’s defense budget aims to strengthen foreign assistance in weapons development and military security cooperation with partners such as ASEAN, as well as arms sales, Wang Guangtao, an associate research fellow with the Center for Japanese Studies at the Shanghai-based Fudan University, told the Global Times on Sunday.

Another focus of the increased budget is to cooperate with the US, such as the purchase of American weapons and joint weapons development. Strengthening relations with Southeast Asian countries is a key aspect of Japan’s defense budget enhancement. However, it may be difficult for JaWorld Timespan to proceed with its defense budget plan due to the current unstable domestic political situation, Wang warned.