THE JAPAN TIMES TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 12, 2013 5 Tokyo International University Michiru Mekata SPECIAL TO THE JAPAN TIMES Inviting guest speakers Joseph Nye, a professor at Harvard University, and Yukio Okamoto, diplomatic analyst and senior fellow at the Center for Interna- tional Studies, MIT, Tokyo Inter- national University and Harvard University Asia Center co-hosted the National Security Sympo- sium on Oct. 25. The panel dis- cussion was moderated by Jon Mills, manager of Harvard’s Asia Center. Overall picture quite optimistic Nye said the most dynamic part of the world economy in the 21st century is in Asia. He stated “the U.S. could not and would not leave Asia, because the state of Hawaii is in the Pacific and since we have Japan, our ally, in the region.” He also noted that the term “pivot” is an inappro- priate expression to represent the U.S.-Asia relationship, since “pivot” hints the existence of a nation around which the others maneuver. “The U.S. was never in a pivotal position with Asian countries. Hence, we should re- place the word ‘pivot’ with ‘re- balancing.’ ” As for the population and product balance between the U.S. and Asia, Nye stated that the 21st century is the period for the balance to return to normal. This is because while over 50 percent of the world’s population and products originated from Asia in 1800, the figure for products dropped to 20 percent in 1900 while the population remained roughly the same. This century, Asia again makes up half of not only the world population but also the world economy. He added that such a recovery is good for helping several million people escape poverty but is bad from a security viewpoint as con- flict arises. Turning to the current situ- ation, Nye noted the mounting fear in the U.S. toward the rise of China, similar to the fear Brit- ain had toward Germany during World War I. “But the situation is different between the U.S. and China today, and the per capita income of China is unlikely to surpass that of the U.S. in the first half of this century.” Nye considered the U.S. po- sition firm due to its strong military power, the outranking, superb soft power achieved to- gether with Japan, and for main- taining its leading position in such technological fields as bio- tech and nanotech. He further commented on the increasingly independent position the U.S. has obtained in terms of energy, thanks to its newly discovered shale gas/oil reserves. Addition- ally, Nye said the U.S.-China re- lationship today is different from the Cold War era when the U.S. cut off all contact with Russia, as it has roughly 200,000 Chinese students studying in the country. Recapping his session, Nye viewed the picture of Asia in the future with China gaining a bet- ter position in the world. He also noted the need for the U.S. and Japan to maintain a stable re- gional U.S.-Japan-China triangle balance through the U.S.-Japan Security Treaty. “But despite what I have said, my overall pic- ture is quite optimistic,” he con- cluded. Japan, U.S. should think, act together Okamoto scrutinized Japan’s strategy in East Asia and touched upon the fact that Japan is in- vesting a staggering 25 percent of total GDP to help the region develop. “Nevertheless, Japan’s responsibility for its misconduct in East Asia during World War II is still pursued in today’s diplo- matic talks. That is very different from the situation of Germany, which isn’t openly bashed de- spite not making any compensa- tion on a national level. I am not saying that Japan has no respon- sibility, but the issue of ‘educa- tion’ is relevant here.” Okamoto further noted the need for the Japanese them- selves to face history squarely, and said some Japanese politi- cians are generating misunder- standings by stating that the ex- istence of “comfort women” — Asian women forced to work as military sex slaves — could not be avoided during wartime. “Let us be clear. What is wrong from a current value sense is wrong.” Okamoto then questioned the recent actions of South Korea, in- cluding its proposal for construc- tion of Ahn Jun Geun’s bronze together with China as a hero for assassinating Hirobumi Ito, the first Japanese prime minister. “That is an act that has gone too far. What does South Korea want to do? Regardless, Japan and South Korea should check our actions and behavior, in order not to sour our relationship any further,” he said. Okamoto further commented that Japan’s safety cannot be guaranteed without the existence of the U.S., and that the Japan-U.S. Security Treaty ex- ists as an inhibitive power to any military clashes. As Japan’s relationship with South Korea and China has stalemated to the worst level in recent history, Okamoto noted the need for Japan to spend more money on PR, as well as on cultural and academic ex- change. He stressed that this is especially important for the sixth-generation youths in China who grew up receiving education favorable to Japan. He ended by saying, “Japan and the U.S. should think and act to- gether on various issues that are facing East Asia.” Discussion session reveals mul- tiple views The dialogue started with Nye noting the air pocket created by the 1930s generation that is passing away, as the anti-Japa- nese generation youths entered the socioeconomic scene. As to ways of reversing the trend of nationalist education, Okamoto suggested the generation of “the feeling that South Korea needs Japan and China needs Japan. But if we were to improve their sentiment toward us, we must be seen as a very reliable and trustworthy country.” Addition- ally, he said “whereas econom- ic disparity can be overlooked, strategic/military disparity is problematic. Such disparity can be resolved only through Japan’s strong relationship-building with the U.S.” Mills then asked “if we were to categorize nationalism into ‘posi- tive nationalism’ and ‘negative nationalism’ , how can we nur- ture the positive while avoiding the negative?” Nye replied that a certain amount of national- ism or pride in one’s country is important. “But antagonism and negative action toward other countries, the attitude of the me- dia and education systems that foster negative nationalism are problematic.” He also added that “politicians sometimes use such negative nationalism intention- ally for their benefit.” Okamoto recalled that a “no nationalism issue existed during the Japan- China honeymoon period. But as China’s relationship with Ja- pan soured, many anti-Japan theme buildings have sprung up throughout the continent. Children visiting those places naturally nurture hatred toward Japan. As such, political leaders should review their action. I also resent Japan trimming its nation- al budget on exchange students.” Mills then referred to the shale gas/oil revolution, and inquired whether that would change the calculus between Japan and China or the U.S. with China, and if so, what happens to the sea lanes in the Middle East. Nye admitted that the current energy conditions are quite dra- matic. “But that doesn’t mean the U.S. can be dismissed from protecting the Persian Gulf be- cause we have allies there. We don’t suffer directly, but in the interdependent global econ- omy, we cannot ‘pivot’ away from the Middle East. As Chi- na becomes more dependent on the Middle East for oil, the U.S. becomes less dependent because it now has shale gas/ oil reserves. The U.S. and Ja- pan should cooperate more to protect the sea lanes, as such action creates a very good bar- gaining position for the two countries while pressuring Chi- na.” Okamoto revealed the cur- rent frustration of Japan, which needs cheap yet safe sources of energy. “We cannot go back to nuclear power, but oil is more expensive and less clean than natural gas. Though Japan seeks to become a hybrid society, such a detour in energy policy would take another 30 years or so to complete.” Mills then referred to the situ- ation on the Korean Peninsula, and asked if something could be done by the U.S. or China with regard to North Korea. Nye responded by saying there isn’t much we can do in terms of soft power and we have to essentially depend on hard power through economic sanctions. He also stated that we should use China as it wants to see a denuclear- ized Korean Peninsula. “The best direction to take would therefore be to impose economic sanc- tions plus pressure,” Nye said. Okamoto stated that we should resume the six-party talks and join the efforts of the U.S. with Japan to make North Korea un- derstand that nuclear usage is meaningless. Questions were then received from the floor. The first question was related to Japan’s territorial dispute with China and South Korea. It asked whether there was any soft power that Japan can use in its diplomatic talks with the two countries. Nye re- plied by saying, “if I were Japan, I would tell China or South Ko- rea that I am willing to take the issue to the International Court of Justice. Another point of note here is that Japan’s insistence on gaining the sovereign rights over a couple of rocks has lost the general support of Seoul citizens. In that context, you have to think carefully about how you use your soft power.” Okamoto disagreed, saying “but the geographical im- plications of ‘those rocks’ have changed today as compared to the 1980s as they literally serve as the gateway into those sea lanes.” Focusing on how the U.S. will balance and deploy its future strategy toward Japan and China, Nye said that the U.S. is trying to create a common interest among the three countries, and the tri- angle is a metaphor and not an equal balance. “But the relation- ship between the U.S. and Japan is that of economic prosperity because the two countries are allies,” he added. Regarding the maintenance of the U.S.-Japan Security Trea- ty, Nye pointed out the impor- tance of host nation support by saying, “it is more expensive to bring American troops back to the U.S. than keeping them in Japan. Furthermore, their pres- ence in Japan sends a message that we are prepared to take action any time.” Okamoto noted that in the short term, we should stress retaining the Japan-U.S. Security Treaty, and resolve the tension with China and South Korea. Nye concluded the sympo- sium by saying that we must be cautious about stimulating nationalism; be prepared for accidents and miscalculations; maintain the U.S.-Japan treaty as the bedrock in East Asia; and that too much fear is dangerous. Reconfirming the U.S.-Japan relationship as vital Asian anchor (Publicity) Above: Tokyo International University, located in Kawagoe City, Saitama Prefecture, held the National Security Symposium on Oct. 25. Right: Guest speakers Joseph Nye (left), a professor at Harvard University, and Yukio Okamoto (center), diplomatic analyst and senior fellow at MIT’s Center for International Studies, take part in a panel discussion, moderated by Jon Mills, manager of Harvard’s Asia Center. Yukio Okamoto Willamette University campus in Salem, Oregon Joseph Nye Based on the solid partnership as a sister school for nearly a half century, Tokyo International University established its extension campus adjacent to Willamette University, Salem, Oregon, in 1989. A one-year American Studies Program offered at Tokyo International University of America provides the students with a strong knowledge of American society and culture, as well as academic English taught by TIUA and Willamette faculty. Living in dorms together with other Willamette students, program participants can also participate in a variety of extracurricular activities operated by Willamette students, in addition to interesting volunteer work in the community. Furthermore, the program provides a fine support system that is serviced by the local staff as well as the students themselves who act as tutors or supporters. As of September 2013, the program had received over 2,500 students from TIU, and is valued highly as many of the graduates have found jobs where they can utilize their bilingual language skills, as well as the precious knowledge they acquired from living and studying in an international setting. TIUA/Willamette offers unique study-abroad opportunity
