Japan Title: Japan's Reluctant Realism: Foreign Policy Challenges in an Era of Uncertain Power

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Manufacturer: Palgrave Macmillan
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Japan's Reluctant Realism: Foreign Policy Challenges in an Era of Uncertain Power by Palgrave Macmillan

an excellent book on Japanese foreign policy

This is an excellent book on Japanese foreign policy written by someone now working for the National Security Council. It draws upon on copious research including interviews conducted by the author, as well as Japanese and English language secondary source materials. Green convincingly argues that Japanese foreign policy is particularly driven by parochial domestic considerations, and in this respect the book is quite timely in light of the political changes occurring in Japan. I learned quite a bit from reading this book -- even regarding issues on which I thought my own prior knowledge was significant.
Japan's Reluctant Realism: Foreign Policy Challenges in an Era of Uncertain Power by Palgrave Macmillan

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Has Japanese foreign policy changed in the post-Cold War era? On the surface, it appears to have been quite consistent since the end of World War II. It has stressed the US-Japanese security alliance, the use of economic tools, and constraints on the use of force. However, this book argues that new ideas and new patterns of diplomacy have in fact come about following the changes after the fall of the Berlin Wall. Using case studies that look at China, the Korean peninsula, Russia and Central Asia, Southeast Asia, and international institutions, Michael Green uncovers a more Japanese foreign policy in Japan. Though it still converges with the US on fundamental issues, it is increasingly independent. While remaining low-risk, it is more sensitive to balance-of-power issues. It is still reactive, but it is far less passive. Green argues that this emerging strategic view, what he calls “reluctant realism,” is being shaped by a combination of changes in the international environment, insecurity about national power resources, and Japanese aspirations for a national identity that moves beyond the legacy of World War II. As a result, it is time for the US and the world to recognize Japan as an independent actor in Northeast Asia and to assess Japanese foreign policy on its own terms.

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