Over the last decade, Japan’s position in Asia and the world has shifted
considerably. On the one hand, the Japanese economy has increasingly
become oriented toward East Asia, with much of the country’s
manufacturing tied up in regional production networks. Reflecting this
reality, Tokyo has sought to take a leadership position in regional
initiatives, including ones that exclude its security patron, the United
States. On the other hand, the rise of China has not only made that
country an indispensable economic partner but at the same time has
also made it a more formidable competitor in political and military terms.
In response, Japan has worked to strengthen the U.S.-Japan alliance.
Meanwhile, North Korea’s apparent determination to develop nuclear
weapons and longer-range missiles has complicated some of the basic
assumptions of the alliance.