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This study on Japan's informal political actors and networks will not only provide a foundation for us to further understand Japanese politics and foreign policy but will also enable us to get a better idea of how networks function in a larger context, namely between Tokyo, Beijing and Washington. Social network is not only an important part of Japanese policy making but also a crucial factor in the China-Japan-U.S. triangular relationship. Instead of providing equal attention to each parties of this triangle, this paper will focus on Japan's informal political actors and networks by examining the process of normalization in its relations with China. In addition to detailed analysis of political actors in Japanese politics and society, it also provides an account of Beijing's reaction in this significant process. In the concluding part, this paper also provides some preliminary analysis in making international comparisons particularly with the United States. Thus, it will also assist us in understanding the networks between the three powers in the Asia-Pacific region. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the increasing economic and strategic clout of China and the vulnerability of the American power in the Gulf, the US policy makers are searching for a new strategy in the Asia Pacific region. Their ultimate purpose is to neutralize the preeminence of China.Pentagon is trying to forge a new alliance of three well-established democracies-US,India and Japan. On April 16,2007 all the three nations began a joint military drill in the Pacific. More or less at the same time, the first India-US Defence Joint Working Group met in New Delhi.These two develpments have certainly raised the temperature in Beizing.Recently China has raised its defence budget by 17.8 percent and successfully tested its antisatellite ballistic missile.No doubt the Pacific military exercise by US, India and Japan has been taken as an alarming signal by China.The proposed paper will try to explore the evolving strategy of the US in the Asia Pacific region.One has to explore as to what extent such a three nation joint exercise is addressing the unprecedented rise of China in the politico-economic and strategic affaires of the region. We will also examine as to how far the existing American policy of strategic engagement with China is being reexamined. ..PAT.-Unpublished Manuscript [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Do rising political tensions impact the level of economic exchange between states? The relationship between economic interdependence and war has been a central debate in international relations, but less is known about whether smaller shifts in relations between states produce corresponding shifts in economic affairs. Our paper examines whether periods of heightened political tensions with negative opinion polls and public discord between top leaders produce any measurable effect on economic transactions. We focus on US-French relations and Sino-Japanese relations as two cases that allow us to compare varying levels of political tension given high economic interdependence and different alliance relations. Heightened tensions over Iraq led many Americans to call for boycotting French products. Sino-Japanese relations worsened over the visits by Prime Minister Koizumi to a controversial shrine and led to widespread boycott efforts and suspension of top-level leader meetings. Our analysis of aggregate trends in trade and investment flows shows that sour political relations did not spill over to harm economic affairs. Even looking at the sales of top firms or products with high salience, we find no evidence that periods of political tensions had lower levels of exchange than other periods. We conclude that sunk costs in existing trade and investment relations and competitive pressures in global markets mean that economic transactions show little response to political trends. Nevertheless, we discuss conditions under which prolonged tensions may lead in the long term to a decline in brand image and reduced cooperation for governance rules, which would create linkage between political and economic relations. ..PAT.-Unpublished Manuscript [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines the role of the United States in Sino-Japanese relations since the end of World War II. Special emphasis is placed on three major debates between China and Japan where the American role appears to have been critical: (1) the history issue; (2) the Senkaku/Diaoyu Islands dispute; and (3) the Taiwan issue. The central argument is that a series of institutional innovations, in Sino-Japanese relations introduced by the United States after the end of World War II, reinforced the U.S. alliance with Japan, and often rather indirectly accounts for the continuing tense relations between China and Japan. These developments, including the Tokyo War Crime Trials, the San Francisco Peace Treaty in 1951, the Okinawa reversion treaty in 1971, and the U.S.-Japan Security Treaty, have had a major influence on Sino-Japanese relations that endures today. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses Pax Americana II, the period after the Cold War, and the strategic choices of Japan. It states that the transformation of the international system from bipolar to unipolar results in a more assertive U.S. policy. It cites the decision of the U.S. government to restore its alliance with Japan and initiate talks with China to prevent the financial market crisis. It offers an overview of the defense policy of the Japanese government.

That China has been politically and economically playing an important role in the world has great impact to regions all over the world, especially in East Asia. After the Cold War, Japan has gradually walked out of its past "one nation pacifism," actively participating in the international affairs under frameworks of "U.S.-Japan alliance" and the U.N. It is to fulfill its dream of becoming a "political great power." Therefore, Japan has also been playing an important role in the regional issues. On November 2002, North Korea decided to reactivate its uranium-enriching program. It has raised the tension in the region of East Asia; it has also disturbed international relations in the region. The U.S. expects China and Japan, two great powers in the Northeast Asia, intervene in the North Korea problem, hoping to solve the problem with multi-literal agreement. Can the North Korea nuclear crisis shorten the diplomatic distance between China and Japan, establishing the "military strategic partnership," or showing the radical paradox between the two countries? Examining interactions between China and Japan in the North Korea nuclear crisis can clarify the thinking of two countries' regional strategies and benefits of competition and cooperation in politic, security, and economy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As a rising, regional, and very influential power, China is in the process of buttressing its military forces in the Pacific rim. Realist theory predicts a growing regional and international power, such as China, will more likely be propelled to attain regional hegemony. As the only superpower today, however, the United States will hardly relinquish its naval dominance in the Pacific. The balancing act Washington must pursue?in order to create a successful counterbalance against potential Chinese naval hostility?is to strengthen ties with United States allies in the Pacific region who may not feel comfortable with Beijing?s military presence expanding throughout the Pacific rim. Washington has recently begun to strengthen its military ties with Tokyo, and has started to encourage Japan to invest more in its military infrastructure. Japan, leery of its uneasy relationship with China, has made overtures to Washington as well. The difficulty for the White House, however, lies in crafting a relationship with Japan that is not simply seen to be some sort of anti-Chinese bloc. While it may be tempting for some in the Pentagon to forge a military relationship with Japan built on the premise that China?s military rise is harmful to both U.S. and Japanese interests in the Pacific rim, this paper will argue that a stronger Washington?Tokyo bond should attempt to establish a more cooperative relationship with Beijing rather than try to contain China?s influence throughout the region, which, for all intents and purposes, is inevitable. Although establishing a cooperative relationship will not be easy among the United States, Japan, and China, it is certainly a crucial project that will require great perseverance in order to lay the foundations for a more prosperous relationship advantageous to all three nations, as well as to the rest of the world. ..PAT.-Unpublished Manuscript [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

South Korea?s international position is a complex mix of pressures. Focused overwhelmingly on the last vestige of the Cold War ? its unresolved division of the peninsula into North and South ? South Korea must also manage its alliance with the United States, devise a modus vivendi with a massive and dynamic China, and resolve its relationship with Japan. To that end, over the past decade, a fairly clear South Korean grand strategy has emerged, one that emphasizes economic over military issues, accommodation rather than confrontation of China, and a slowly evolving alliance with the United States. The centerpiece of this grand strategy has been a strategy of engaging North Korea economically while downplaying the nuclear issue. This paper will make three main points. First, in terms of overall national security strategy, South Korea has committed itself to a strategy of interdependence and engagement with North Korea. As a result, South Korea?s engagement strategy will continue to have consequences for regional policy toward North Korea, for the U.S. role in the region, and for China?s influence. Second, South Korea?s development has depended on being deeply engaged in the regional and global economy, and this orientation has actually increased in the wake of the Asian financial crisis a decade ago. Indeed, South Korea ? as with many East Asian states ? has increasingly begun to look regionally for its economic partners, especially to China, and away from the United States. Third, South Korea firmly desires to continue its close relationship with the United States. However, South Korea?s national priorities are regional, and differ from Washington?s global priorities. ..PAT.-Unpublished Manuscript [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A dramatic transformation has occurred in India-US relations in the last decade. The interactions between the two democracies have expanded enormously and their impact is beginning to be felt beyond the bilateral realm. This evolving partnership holds the potential to shape not only the regional politics of South Asia but the international relations of the wider Asia-Pacific region. Some analysts project an even grander vision, claiming that this relationship may play a decisive role in determining the future global order. Taking these projections as a point of departure, and recognizing the impressive strides that have been made in Indo-US ties, this research focuses on the strategies, outputs and consequences of this foreign policy engagement. Its impact on Asian stability in the context of a rising China is also analysed. The research also studies the dynamics between the three major Asian powers, India, China and Japan, whose bilateral equations with the US are divergent and therefore of concern to the smaller powers of the region. How these major powers relate to one another and whether their mutual interactions can be autonomous are some of the questions that this research explores while charting the course of Indo-US relations. ..PAT.-Unpublished Manuscript [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Chinese perspective is required to better understand the China?s foreign policies. China fundamentally changed its national strategy in early 1970s. During the Cold War era, the U.S. and Japan were enemies of China. However, China has acknowledged the U.S. as its strategic partner, and normalized its diplomatic relations with Japan in 1972. After the normalizations, China have developed its political and economic relations with the U.S. and Japan economically and politically. Recently, tension between China, and the U.S. and Japan have increased. On the other hand, after the open policy of Deng Xiaoping in late 1970s, China adapted capitalistic economic development strategy; it seems to be very successful. However, China still holds Marxism-Leninism as its fundamental national ideology with Maoism. On the other hand, Chinese Communist Party has officially opened its membership to Chinese capitalists.To understand and correctly explain the China's national behavior, a unique Chinese perspective based on a new Sino-centrism is required. The new Sino-centrism is a combination of Marxism-Leninism, Maoism, and traditional Sino-centric thoughts. ..PAT.-Conference Proceeding [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Classical Chinese military thought is undoubtedly a precious cultural heritage from the East. However, the US-led West has thus far a limited understanding of the true beauty of the strategic thinking in this treasure house. This study uses the world’s oldest board game, Weiqi (or Go), to bring out the essence of classical Chinese military and strategic thinking. The game of Weiqi bears striking resemblance to international relations and warfare. It also exemplifies the Chinese military classics to a remarkable extent. Weiqi has also been a national game of Japan for well over 1,500 years. It is currently very popular in China, Japan, Korea, and is spreading rapidly across the European and American continents (thanks to the development of internet). As the hegemonic United States seeks to maintain a strategic edge over a rising Pacific Asia, a little knowledge of this ancient board game will take US national leaders a long way in understanding Eastern strategic thinking and achieving the US foreign policy objectives. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]