Some Japanese keep cautious views on ties with US

By Channel NewsAsia's Japan Bureau Chief
Michiyo Ishida | Posted: 07 November 2008 0032 hrs

TOKYO: Japan has been one of the strongest allies of the US on the world stage.

But with a new president taking over at the White House, some Japanese are keeping a cautious view on ties with the US.

There are those who are still haunted by memories of friction the last time America was under a Democratic president.

Japanese Prime Minister Taro Aso has reacted calmly to the victory of Barack Obama in the US presidential election.

He said: "It doesn't matter who the president of the United States of America is. It will be important for us to maintain the long 50-year relationship that we've built up between the US and Japan with the next new president."

Japan-US relations hit a low in the 1990s under Bill Clinton. The US sustained a huge trade deficit with Japan as a result of pro-China policies.

Some economists say it is a different picture now. Japan has created many jobs in the US, with major carmakers such as Toyota and Honda running huge factories there.

Chief economist at Credit Suisse Securities Japan, Hiromichi Shirakawa, said: "I think Japan-US economic relationship is represented by give and take... They (the US) are importing products from Japan.

"Japan is exporting products to the US. That means Japan is exporting capital to the US as well, so Japan is financing part of (the) US trade deficit. Inter-relationship between US and Japan, (as well as) US and China are very strong."

Some analysts say the US will need Japan even more amidst the global financial crisis. After all, it is still the world's second largest economy, and it has overcome its own banking crisis.

There are those who say the US under Mr Obama will expect Japan to play a bigger role in international defence and security.

"For example, Japan must even send its force to Afghanistan. Now, Japan is contributing to support the fuel in the Indian Ocean. That's the minimum thing Japan can do. But Japan should do more in that security area," said a professor of International Security at Aoyama Gakuin University, Jitsuo Tsuchiyama.

But that would also depend on the strength of the mandate of newly appointed Prime Minister Taro Aso.

At this point, Obama's Japan policy is unclear. It is believed the Japanese government is trying to arrange a meeting between Obama and Aso as soon as possible. And the earliest possible date is November 15, when the G20 summit takes place in Washington.

-CNA/yt