Japan needs to think again on the US and China

Japanese politicians and nationals seem to firmly believe the United States will strongly support their country once the Diaoyu Islands dispute with China escalates into a regional crisis, says an article in People's Daily. Excerpts:

Japan intends to force the US to take sides by pushing the issue from bad to worse. This is an incorrect and dangerous strategy for Japan.

Japan thinks the US will maintain its alliance with it in the Asia-Pacific region and help Japan when necessary. But the US has never taken sides in territorial land disputes in the region and cannot afford to turn China into a foe in the region merely by protecting Japan.

The US is only trying to comfort Japan by standing closer to it. This symbolic gesture leaves Japan with the unrealistic allusion that the US will fight on its behalf. But history suggests the US has never fought a regional war for another country after World War II. The US can only fight for itself and will put pressure on Japan to retreat when Washington finds the situation is getting out of control.

Japan believes the US shares its view that China is a threat. However, more rational minds in the US see China as an important cooperator in business and international governance. The  increasingly closer interdependence between China and the US should make Japan realize that China is by no means a threat to its "big brother" but an indispensable partner in various fields.

If Japan always relies on the US to deal with China, it will not only lose the strategic opportunity to build long-term relations with China, but also probably lose the US' trust. Japan's vigilance on China in past decades has isolated it from the world's major powers.

Japan has already lost its way in allying with the US and preparing for an imagined threat from China. The Diaoyu Islands issue should serve as an opportunity for Japan to rethink its foreign policy and revise its thinking on the US and China.