Japan is a critical treaty ally and trading partner, protected under the United States’ “nuclear umbrella.” This partnership has come as a result of decades of changing foreign policy, beginning with the American occupation.
Demilitarization and Democratization: U.S.-Japan Relations After World War II
After the U.S.’s victory in World War II, the Tokyo War Crimes Tribunal marked the beginning of Japan’s demilitarization and democratization. After forcing Emperor Hirohito to renounce his divine right to leadership, the Tribunal prosecuted high-ranking officials for war crimes, barring them from government. Although initially formulated by occupation authorities, the new Constitution of Japan was passed by the Japanese Diet, or the legislature, to achieve “demilitarization and democratization.” In particular, Article Nine attempted to permanently demilitarize Japan. Led by General MacArthur, the American occupation dissolved the Japanese military and the zaibatsu that fueled the war effort. Democratization quickly followed, creating opportunities for regional education efforts, labor unions, and women’s suffrage. Beyond demilitarization, the American occupation sought to boost cooperative trade and strengthen Japan’s free market capitalism, an effort spearheaded by the banker Joseph Dodge’s advocacy for limited government intervention in the economy. While free market capitalism continued through the Cold War, the U.S. would attempt to remove demilitarization policies.
To combat Cold War pressure, the U.S. would reverse many of its policies regarding democratization and demilitarization. After the American Occupation ended with the San Francisco Peace Treaty of 1951, Japan became an official military ally of the U.S. with the signing of the U.S.-Japan Security Treaty. In addition to full military reliance on the U.S., Japan essentially committed itself to economic, military, and diplomatic dependence on the U.S. The treaty enabled the U.S. to continue to station troops in Japan and to keep control of Okinawa. Named after Prime Minister Shigeru Yoshida, the Yoshida Doctrine deepened this military dependence but allowed Japanese officials to reconstruct the Japanese economy.
As the Cold War intensified, the Treaty faced significant revisions, requiring the U.S. to defend Japan in the event of an attack. Despite this military security, some left-leaning and moderate groups, abbreviated by the term “anpo,” opposed the treaty, trying to maintain Japanese neutrality. The revisions produced some of the largest protests in Japan’s modern history, damaging U.S.-Japan relations. To help repair damages to relations and gather support for U.S. war efforts in Vietnam, the United States eventually returned several islands and Okinawa to Japan by the 1970s.
However, with Nixon’s visit to the People’s Republic of China and Japan’s rapid economic growth, relations faced significant strains. By the end of the 1970s, the Japanese economy could rival the U.S. economy and jeopardize U.S. businesses. The rivalry simmered down after Japan agreed to the Orderly Marketing Arrangements, limiting Japanese exports that threatened U.S. businesses, especially in technology.
With the Occupation decades behind, Japan’s autonomy in designating foreign policy grew. By the Clinton era, the U.S. and Japan’s communications centered on China’s development and the nuclear threat of North Korea. To attack these issues, the Clinton administration focused on pressuring China on multiple fronts by arming South Korea and Japan. On the democratic side of their policies, Japan holds an incredibly high freedom index score of 96 according to Freedom House and has reached considerable democratic stability.
Turbulence and Tariffs: The U.S.-Japan Alliance Today
Military support for Japan has continued, with Japan paying out two billion dollars annually for U.S. military support in the region. According to an article by NBC News, Japan has become a “key enabler for the evolution of our security architecture” in Asia and the Pacific. However, Chinese pressure on Taiwan in the region has only intensified.
Under the Biden administration, the U.S. has facilitated cordial relations with the Japanese government headed by Prime Minister Kishida. In the last few years, the partnership has begun discussions over Chinese aggression against Taiwan. Although Japan officially supports the One China policy and Taiwanese independence, the 1979 Taiwan Relations Act fails to clarify whether Japan would support any aggressive or defensive measures in the event of an invasion. Despite legislative neutrality, some Japanese politicians believe a conflict in Taiwan would spill over into Japan, calling the threat a serious security risk. Even if Japan does not engage China in an invasion of Taiwan, the U.S. would lead a defense of Taiwan from its bases in Japan and the Philippines, inevitably involving Japan. If China were to gain hold of Taiwan, the balance of power in the region would centralize around China, threatening Japanese security.
These fears sparked national and international security summits involving Japan, South Korea, and the U.S. In August 2023, President Biden hosted Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and President Yoon Suk-yeol in the first-ever summit meeting of the three powers’ leaders. The summit’s membership declared a new era of “trilateral partnership” and announced plans to launch a “secretariat-like coordinating body” to improve regional security. The trilateral cooperation organization also sanctioned North Korean personnel to counter their illegal arms transactions and the transfer of refined oil. Despite this moment of solidarity, the Biden Administration’s cooperativeness slackened when discussions turned to economics.
In the last two years, Nippon Steel, a Japanese steel company, announced plans to acquire U.S. Steel. The announcement revealed President Biden’s strong resistance to the move and fears of losing support for U.S. labor unions. However, some politicians have pointed out that U.S. steel needs to pursue the merger to meet resource demands. Nevertheless, the security threat of China looms larger in the minds of Washington officials. In the event of a conflict, some politicians insist that a Chinese invasion would supersede any economic disagreements. Even so, economic disagreements have become central to the second Trump administration’s relations with Japan.
Today, the U.S. has a massive trade deficit with Japan due to the U.S.’s reliance on Japanese automakers. President Donald Trump has criticized Japanese leadership, decrying their practices as “unfair” and imposing a metal tariff. Following his withdrawal from the Trans-Pacific Partnership, President Trump has imposed extraordinary tariffs on Japan, currently at twenty-five percent. The abrupt shift in economic and foreign relations has created considerable instability in the alliance. It is uncertain whether the trilateral cooperation between the United States, Japan, and South Korea will last beyond the terms of the leaders currently in power.