Joe Biden’s victory saves the Japanese government some disappointment. Over the past few years, Tokyo’s diplomatic efforts were bolstered by the personal relationship between former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and President Donald J. Trump.
- Biden and the World – Part 1 Keeping U.S.- China Strategic Competition Under Control
- Biden and the World – Part 2: Opportunities for Africa in a U.S. Diplomatic Reboot
However, no one in the current Japanese government is capable of working with President Trump in the same way. The election result forestalls that conundrum.
- Biden and the World – Part 3: A Chance for Europe to Pursue Greater Autonomy with U.S. Support
- Biden and the World – Part 4: Biden Can Restore Balance for Democracies
Given former Vice President Biden’s election, chances are good that Japan and the United States will be able to work together to rejuvenate international cooperative efforts.
- Biden and the World – Part 5: The Challenge of National Reconciliation and Multilateralism
- Biden and the World – Part 6: Biden Knows Central Europe and It Knows Him
First, Biden supports multilateral cooperation. Second, and equally significant, a recent Genron NPO conducted poll in September found that more than 70 percent of the Japanese people—in the hopes of avoiding global division—support international cooperation.
- Biden and the World – Part 7: Japan – USA; Renewing International Cooperation
- Biden and the World – Part 8: Lingering Challenges in the U.S.-ASEAN Strategic Partnership
Japan is also likely to support and align itself with the Biden administration on issues related to free trade, infectious disease, and climate change. A U.S. decision to return to the Trans-Pacific Partnership would also help change the tide of recent years, fortifying the U.S.-Japanese alliance as one founded on the values of global freedom and democracy, and, at the same time, helping protect the rules-based global liberal order.
Yasushi Kudo
President, The Genron NPO (Japan)
