Chinese Aggressions

Abe, Mattis reaffirm U.S. commitment on Senkakus
The Yomiuri Shimbun

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe shakes hands with U.S. Defense Secretary Jim Mattis, as Defense Minister Tomomi Inada looks on, at the Prime Minister’s Office in Tokyo on Friday.

Visiting U.S. Defense Secretary Jim Mattis clearly said during talks with Prime Minister Shinzo Abe on Friday afternoon that the Senkaku Islands in Okinawa Prefecture are within the scope of Article 5 of the Japan-U.S. Security Treaty, which obliges the United States to defend Japan, according to a senior government official who attended the meeting.
At the opening of the meeting, Abe said he is certain the two countries “can demonstrate in our country and abroad that the Japan-U.S. alliance is unshakable.” 

In response, Mattis said that he intended to make clear during the meeting that Article 5 of the security treaty will be important five years or 10 years from now, just as it was a year ago or five years ago.
Mattis arrived in Tokyo on the day to hold talks with the prime minister, Defense Minister Tomomi Inada and other members of Abe’s Cabinet to exchange views on the security environment in East Asia and to address mutual security concerns. 

The new U.S. defense chief’s visit to Japan marks the first by a U.S. Cabinet member under the administration of President Donald Trump. 

The ministerial meeting with Inada is scheduled for Saturday, after which they will hold a joint press conference.
During these talks, the two sides are also expected to confirm that the United States will firmly uphold the “nuclear umbrella” (see below) over Japan in its defense.
During his presidential election campaign last year, Trump was ambiguous about defending the Senkakus and also suggested that if Japan doesn’t contribute its due share to shouldering the burden of stationing U.S. forces in Japan, it would be acceptable for Japan to possess its own nuclear weapons to confront North Korea’s nuclear threat. 

These remarks caused apprehension on the Japanese side.
Confirmation by Mattis of the U.S. commitment to defend the Senkakus and maintain nuclear deterrence apparently aims to demonstrate that the position of the Japan-U.S. alliance with regard to Japan’s defense remains unchanged under the Trump administration.
At the ministerial meeting on Saturday, the defense chiefs will also confirm their intent to steadily move forward with the plan to relocate the U.S. Marine Corps’ Futenma Air Station in Ginowan, Okinawa Prefecure, to the Henoko district of Nago in the same prefecture, and other plans to reorganize the U.S. forces stationed in Japan.
Inada said at a press conference after a Cabinet meeting on Friday that at the ministerial meeting, she intends to “exchange candid views [with Mattis] on how to strengthen the Japan-U.S. alliance, the reorganization of U.S. forces and other matters to bring a greater level of certainty to the alliance.”

■ “Nuclear umbrella”
The idea that nuclear attacks can be deterred if a country makes clear its position that it would use its nuclear arsenal to retaliate if its allies came under nuclear attack from a third party. 

Between Japan and the United States, the idea was confirmed for the first time in 1965 in a summit meeting of Prime Minister Eisaku Sato and U.S. President Lyndon Johnson. 

The Guidelines for Japan-U.S. Defense Cooperation, which were revised for the second time in April 2015, stipulate that “the United States will continue to extend deterrence through the full range of capabilities, including U.S. nuclear forces.”

Holy Alliance

Tillerson vows U.S. defense of Japan over Senkakus
Kyodo

WASHINGTON -- U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson on Wednesday affirmed Washington's commitment to the defense of Japan in the event that China attempts to seize the Japanese-administered Senkaku Islands in the East China Sea.
"We've made a commitment to Japan in terms of a guarantee of their defense," Tillerson said during his Senate confirmation hearing, when asked about the U.S. response to any Chinese attempt to take the islets by force.
His remark underscored that the uninhabited islets fall under Article 5 of the Japan-U.S. security treaty.
The affirmation came amid concern in Japan and other U.S. allies about President Donald Trump's commitment to their security.
"We have long-standing ally commitments with Japan and South Korea in the area and I think we would respond in accordance with those accords," Tillerson said, in answer to a question by Florida Sen. Marco Rubio.
Responding to a question by Colorado Sen. Cory Gardner, Tillerson said Beijing's unilateral declaration in 2013 of an air defense identification zone overlapping Japanese airspace over Senkakus was illegal.
Earlier in the hearing, Tillerson, a former chief executive of Exxon Mobil Corp., said U.S. alliances are "durable" and urged allies to play their part in managing alliances.
While noting U.S. allies "are looking for a return of our leadership," he also mentioned the need to "hold our allies accountable to commitments they make. We cannot look the other way at allies who do not meet their obligations."
Trump repeatedly demanded during the presidential campaign that U.S. allies such as Japan, South Korea and North Atlantic Treaty Organization members cover more of the costs associated with stationing U.S. forces -- or else defend themselves.
In the hearing, Tillerson criticized China's "illegal" island-building in disputed waters of the South China Sea and its reluctance to fully exercise its influence on North Korea to curb the country's nuclear and missile programs.
"The island building in the South China Sea itself in many respects, in my view, building islands and then putting military assets on those islands is akin to Russia's taking of Crimea" from Ukraine, he said.
Referring to U.S. interactions with China, which he said have been "both friendly and adversarial," Tillerson said Beijing's economic and trade practices "have not followed its commitments to global agreements," and that China "steals our intellectual property and is aggressive and expansionist in the digital realm."
Tillerson urged China to strictly implement U.N. Security Council sanctions resolutions so as to rein in North Korea's development of nuclear weapons and ballistic missiles, and get Pyongyang to act in accordance with international rules and norms.
"We cannot continue to accept empty promises like the ones China has made to pressure North Korea to reform, only to shy away from enforcement," he said.
"Looking the other way when trust is broken only encourages more bad behavior. And it must end."
Asked whether he shares Trump's opposition to the Trans-Pacific Partnership free trade agreement, Tillerson said, "I do not oppose TPP," but added he shares some of Trump's view about whether the pact as negotiated reflects all the best interests of the United States.
Trump has pledged to withdraw the United States from the TPP, which also involves Japan and 10 other nations, once he takes office on Jan. 20.
As if to dismiss concern that he has close ties with Russian President Vladimir Putin, the secretary of state designate appeared to show a tough stance toward Moscow, as he did on Beijing and Pyongyang.
Tillerson said he will "never recognize" Russia's unilateral annexation of Ukraine's Crimea region in 2014 and that the United States and other countries should maintain sanctions against Moscow.
At the same time, he referred to the need to have "an open and frank dialogue with Russia regarding its ambition so that we know how to chart our own course."
Tillerson advocated conducting a more assertive foreign policy than that of Barack Obama, saying "American leadership must not only be renewed, it must be asserted" to ensure global peace and security.
"If we do not lead, we risk plunging the world deeper into confusion and danger," he said.
"Our adversaries have been emboldened to take advantage of this absence of American leadership."
Asked about the use of force when deemed necessary, Tillerson stood by it as an available option. "Diplomacy will be ineffective if it's not backed up by force," he said.