Regional Responses to U.S.- China Competition in the Indo-Pacific Japan
Abstract
The 2017 U.S. National Security Strategy and the National Defense Strategy summary describe a world characterized by a return to great-power competition, most notably with China in the Indo-Pacific region. U.S. allies and partners will play a crucial role in ensuring outcomes to that competition that favor freedom, democracy, and a security order in which the interests and values represented by the rules-based international order remain strong. Americas enduring alliance with Japan not only is the cornerstone of U.S. force posture in the Indo-Pacific region, but also magnifies and bolsters U.S. influence across that vast swath of territory. Within the region, Southeast Asian countries have been particularly exposed to Chinas expanding influence and coercive diplomacy in recent years, making the ten countries of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations a key focus for U.S. national strategy and the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) in particular. This study focuses on how best to leverage the U.S.-Japan alliance to engage in along-term strategic competition with China in the Southeast Asia region, at least out to 2030.This report on the U.S.Japan alliance and Southeast Asia is part of a broader project that aims to understand the perspectives of U.S. allies and partners in the Indo-Pacific as they formulate and implement their responses to Chinas more assertive foreign and security policy behavior in the region and a more competitive U.S.-China relationship. The research also assesses how DoD, particularly the U.S. Air Force, can best deepen and improve its ability to work with Japan to ensure that Southeast Asian nations have options other than simply bandwagoning with or submitting to Chinese dominance.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Jan 01, 2020
- Accession Number
- AD1115234
Entities
People
- Scott W. Harold
Organizations
- RAND Corporation