|
K-State
Landon Lecturer Ryozo Kato,
Japanese ambassador to the United States
October
18, 2005
Sharing
a global mission
Following
is the complete text of the Landon Lecture delivered Oct. 18 at
Kansas State University by Ryozo Kato, the Japanese ambassador to
the United States.
I
am enjoying being around K-State students. You are much more interesting
than the diplomats I normally deal with, so thank you for inviting
me.
And
before I do anything else, I want you to know something right up
front. The United States is Japan's best friend in the world. And
while Japan has long been America's best friend in Asia, we are
learning how to be a friend of the United States in places like
Iraq and Afghanistan, which I will come to in a few minutes. Japan
and the United States work more closely together in Asia, and that
is what I'd like to focus on this afternoon, on that part of the
world, that is far from the home of the Wildcats.
Here
on the plains of Kansas I want to talk about geopolitics in Asia
and East Asia particularly. In East Asia the tectonic plates of
political history are shifting. The rumblings you hear are forces
of the past bumping against the future. Japan, whose economy remains
three times that of China, has emerged from its post-war introversion
and is becoming a much more internationally outward looking country.
China has emerged as a country with impressive economic growth and
it is developing the military power to match.
Then
we have North Korea, that mysterious black hole of freedom, a country
that has emerged from stable dictatorship to unpredictable dictatorship.
Meanwhile, countries like South Korea and the Philippines remain
part of the global trend toward the democracy and capitalism. China
is the only factor that might change their long-time stratification,
so let us start here.
China
has been increasing its military budget by 10 percent annually for
the past 10 years. Beyond the nuclear missiles and the high tech
conventional weapons on land and in air, China also plans to build
a blue water Navy, capable of operating outside coastal waters.
This clearly worries neighboring countries. What does it intend
to do with all this power. We do not know.
In
March China approved a law authorizing military action if Taiwan
edges too close to formal independence. The United States has said
at various times it would protect Taiwan if attacked. Where might
that lead? Tensions have increased in the Japan-China relationship.
A Chinese submarine intruded into Japanese waters. Desperate for
energy, China began drilling for natural gas just a couple of miles
from Japan's exclusive economic zone. Violent anti-Japanese demonstrations
have erupted in various cities, including Beijing. Such things are
not happening in China without the government's permission.
Is
China going to stand against the United States and Japan? No, not
necessarily. China has a great deal at stake economically. You frequently
see headlines in the United States newspapers now that say things
like, "U.S. flooded by imports from China."
With
annual growth that has averaged nine percent for the first 25 years,
with a population of 1.3 billion people, China is on a fast economic
treadmill. In order to sustain its current level of progress, China
needs a world environment conducive to its economic development
and trade.
Since
Japan and the United States are China's two largest trading partners,
there are powerful economic forces that we will hope will restrain
any military impulse. The greatest unknown in East Asia is North
Korea. We have seen hopeful signs in the nuclear talks in recent
weeks, and let me tell you why this is so important.
There's
a remarkable satellite photo taken at night of the Korean peninsula.
South Korea glows with light emanating from the activities of its
cities and towns. There is life. There's evidence of a civilized
modern society. In dramatic contrast the satellite photo shows that
North Korea is totally dark. Not only because it does not have electricity
to give its people light.
Symbolically
it is dark because of repression of its people. It is a land of
labor camps the size of cities. It is a land where hunger affects
millions and despotism affects all. It is also a dark land because
of the secrecy surrounding its intentions.
North
Korea fired a missile over Japanese territory in 1998. As I often
tell people, imagine if Cuba fired a missile over Florida. The North
also fired a short-range missile into the Sea of Japan, and hundreds
of North Korean missiles can reach every major city in Japan. Another
reason Japan remains suspicious of North Korea is because over the
years it has kidnapped Japanese citizens from their very own land
and secretively taken them to the north.
One
writer in the Wall Street Journal, went so far as to propose that
China should invade North Korea on humanitarian grounds. This, the
author argued, would reduce global tensions, bring justice to millions,
and cement China's emergence as a great power. While no one takes
such a proposal seriously, it indicates the level of frustration
over the North's intransigence and repulsion over its disregard
for humanity.
It
also indicates the hope for China becoming a stabilizing power in
the region. So we have an emerging China and an erratic North Korea.
Meanwhile we see increased terrorism in Southeast Asia. Where does
Japan fit into this picture? A Japan-U.S. alliance was formed during
the Cold War. A European friend said that the end of the Cold War
is like the final act of Mozart's Don Giovanni. In that final act
after Don Giovanni is drawn into hell by the stone knight, Zerlina
and Mazetto sing, "Let us go home and take supper."
But
in the aftermath of the Cold War, in the aftermath of September
11th, we cannot simply go home and take supper. Our alliance remains
more relevant than ever. Let me put Japan's role into historical
perspective. This year is the 60th anniversary of the end of World
War II. Prime minister Koizumi recently again voiced Japan's profound
remorse and heartfelt apology. I believe Japan is finally emerging
from its post-war shock.
Do
you remember the famous photograph during the Vietnam war of a Vietnamese
girl walking down the road from her village, her arms out and having
burned off all her clothes? It is a searing photograph. That is
the way Japan felt after Hiroshima and Nagasaki. After our independence
in 1952, Japan retained only a small-scale force, totally relying
upon America to repel any major invasion. Japan also unequivocally
chose to be a non-nuclear state, dependent upon the United States
nuclear umbrella for deterrence, and we remain so to this very date.
Never
in history has a major economic power like Japan, the second largest
economy in the world, solely relied upon another country for its
protection. That indicates the trust we have in America.
Japans
military posture has remained exclusively defensive. For example,
all of our 200 F-15s are interceptors. In retrospect, the Gulf War
back in the early '90s was the turning point away from our isolation.
Since almost 90 percent of Japan's oil comes from the Gulf, Japan
felt obliged to do something. So we raised the tax on gasoline and
contributed $13 billion to the war effort. $13 billion. The result
was a severe international criticism. The lesson was clear. Blood
cannot be soothed by money. Money alone is not the substitute for
the risk and sacrifice.
Even
before we Japanese became aware of it, the world had come to view
us as a great power. This required a commensurate amount of international
responsibility. As a result of all this Japan began to rethink its
global view. While keeping within our constitutional constraints
and the passivism of the people, the Japanese government began to
expand Japan's international role in security matters.
We
have since been evolving from an introverted country to a more internationally
confident one.
First,
since 1992, Japan has now participated in seven United Nations peacekeeping
missions. Japan sent peacekeeping forces to Cambodia, Rwanda, Mozambique,
Istanbul and the Golan Heights of Syria, where they remain.
Second,
Japan has begun to share more responsibility for maintaining stability
in East Asia. Relieved of the burden to defend against an enormous
Soviet army close to our northern border, Japan could now look around
its archipelago 360 degrees. If a conflict should break out anywhere
in the vicinity, Japan would now assist the United States forces
in non-combatant activities.
Third,
September 11th hit. It was a dark day for our friend and ally. Japan
did not hesitate, we passed the necessary law and broke a half century
tradition, we deployed naval vessels and aircraft in support of
U.S. and allied forces in Afghanistan. This was the first time since
World War II that we dispatched forces to assist a military operation.
In face, we have supplied approximately 30 to 40 percent of all
fuel consumed by U.S. and allied naval vessels in the campaign.
And we are in the fight against terrorism in numerous other ways.
Japan has frozen assets of over 4,000 terrorists or terrorist organizations.
And
fourth, in Iraq, we are working to help the devastated country get
back on its feet politically, economically and structurally. In
addition to being the second largest donor of Iraqi reconstruction
aid after the United States, we have sent Japanese self-defense
forces. They provide medical and other humanitarian assistance,
repair schools and roads, and help in other non-combatant activities
to rebuild Iraq.
Some
are skeptical that freedom and democracy will work in the Middle
East. The same was said of Japan, but the skepticism was proven
wrong, and I believe it will be proven wrong in the Mid East, too.
And,
ladies and gentlemen, no matter how their people live, they want
freedom. They yearn for it. That yearning is universal. Japan and
the United States share a global mission to spread the values of
democracy, free markets and human dignity. We also will continue
to firmly maintain the Japan-U.S. security alliance, which is a
key to peace and stability in the Asia Pacific region.
The
world that Japan and the United States today inhabit is a world
that would be much less than stable if not for our alliance, our
partnership and our friendship.
And,
ladies and gentlemen, on behalf of my government I want you to know
that Japan is proud to be America's ally, and we are proud to be
America's friend. Thank you very much.
|
