Japan-ASEAN Ties Get a Big Boost at 50th Anniversary Summit
Japan-ASEAN Ties Get a Big Boost at 50th Anniversary Summit
From supply chains to outer space, new outcomes lay foundation for future partnership but also highlight challenges in a co-created vision by trusted partners.
The Japan-ASEAN commemorative summit from December 16-18 produced an impressive array of outcomes but also points to the challenges both sides will face in charting out future ties amid wider domestic, regional and global realities.
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Japan-ASEAN Ties Get a Big Boost at 50th Anniversary Summit
Background
Though Japan has long been a priority partner for ASEAN, the summit is a culmination of months of discussions by Tokyo and Southeast Asian states on how to adjust ties for the future amid a more challenging strategic environment. Japan recognizes the world is in a so-called “compound crisis,” as Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said when introducing a new version of Tokyo’s Indo-Pacific strategy earlier this year1. This conception recognizes that it will require much more effort to move the world towards cooperation rather than division amid developments such as intensified U.S.-China competition, Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, climate change, rapid technological and societal changes as well as accommodating rising voices in the Global South2. Southeast Asian states, for their part, have also been trying to manage this “compound crisis” moment while actively pursuing opportunities where possible3. This two-pronged Indo-Pacific balancing act requires both reinforcing ties with diverse external partners while also boosting internal relevance and growth prospects.
Seen from this perspective, in terms of outcomes, it is difficult to think of a single event by any power in Southeast Asia where so many substantive deliverables were announced simultaneously across a diverse range of countries. Tokyo announced three relationship upgrades during the course of the summit from December 16-18 – Malaysia to a comprehensive strategic partnership; East Timor to a comprehensive partnership; and Brunei to a planned strategic partnership. This adds to other advances, including the new Japan-Vietnam comprehensive strategic partnership announced just a few weeks earlier. There were also security-related announcements across several countries, even though the bulk of deliverables were on the economic side relatively speaking. This included a coast guard agreement with the Philippines; new senior defense talks with Cambodia; as well as the provision of a large patrol vessel to Indonesia and early warning and surveillance equipment to Malaysia as Tokyo develops its new Official Security Assistance program. Aspects of Japan’s strategic communication efforts also showcased the breadth of Tokyo’s engagements, with a case in point being Kishida’s op-ed appearing in the Borneo Bulletin — an outlet for those seeking coverage of Brunei-related developments4.
Select Notable ASEAN-Japan Summit Inroads with Individual Southeast Asian Countries
Significance
The summit adds detail to the roadmap for developing the new Japan-ASEAN comprehensive strategic partnership. ASEAN and Japan had already formally upgraded ties to the level of a comprehensive strategic partnership (CSP) back in September during the round of regional summitry hosted by Indonesia — the highest tier of those ASEAN currently has with its dialogue partners5. Officials had earlier indicated that more details on the CSP and the future outlook for relations would be disclosed at the commemorative summit in December6.
The inroads strengthen ASEAN ties with a key partner and help Japan solidify links to a key region within its Indo-Pacific strategy. For ASEAN, the commemorative summit intensifies engagement with a major power which the grouping and individual Southeast Asian states see as critical amid an uncertain regional and global environment. Japan is especially significant within Southeast Asia’s major power alignment mix given its role as the second largest direct investor, a major trade partner and a leading supporter of areas ranging from maritime capacity-building to multilateral support for ASEAN as a grouping. For Japan, it consolidates relations with what Kishida has referred to as a key “horizon” in Japan’s Indo-Pacific strategy amid China’s growing assertiveness7. The chosen tagline of “trusted partners” that can “co-create” in the Japan-ASEAN commemorative summit aptly summarizes the role Tokyo is cultivating in Southeast Asia relative to Beijing. Japan by one count has ranked as the most trusted partner among major powers in Southeast Asia for five years straight8. This is in contrast to China, which, despite its inroads, continues to suffer from what can be characterized as a massive “influence-trust deficit” — one that even some Chinese diplomats have previously privately acknowledged9.
The summit outcomes also provide a sense of where the two sides aim to focus the relationship in the coming years. This includes not just new pacts or initiatives, but also workstreams and general priorities that in the future trajectory of ties (see table below for future sectoral cooperation areas to watch, with accompanying details).
Future Sectoral Cooperation Areas to Watch in Japan-ASEAN Relations
