Takako Hikotani, the Gerald L. Curtis Associate Professor of Modern Japanese Politics and Foreign Policy at Columbia University, has published an article in the September/October 2017 issue of Foreign Affairs titled “Trump’s Gift to Japan: Time for Tokyo to Invest in the Liberal Order.”
“The most fundamental challenge that Trump poses for Japan relates to the liberal democratic order, which has always been critical to Japan’s success,” Professor Hikotani writes. “Going forward, Tokyo cannot be preoccupied simply with managing Trump. It must also seek ways to play a greater role in its region and around the world. Even for immediate challenges such as North Korea, thinking beyond the bilateral relationship will be crucial. In Asia, Japan should work with other countries to keep the TPP alive and to make sure it will be possible for the United States to join it in the future. Along the same lines, Tokyo should support Washington’s reentry into the Paris climate accord, if and when the time comes. Japan can also play a leading role in coordinating with other Asian countries to prevent the North Korean crisis from turning into a tragedy. Keeping the door open for the United States—even Trump’s United States—is a role Japan should seek, not just in Asia but also worldwide.”
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