This week’s announcements of a new command structure for United States forces in Japan and an extra $500 million in military aid for the Philippines represent a major strengthening of the American strategic position in the Asia-Pacific region. Washington said the moves were a response to what it described as China’s provocative behaviour in the South and East China Seas as well as heightened security threats from Russia and North Korea.
The restructuring of US forces in Japan will see the creation of a new operational command capable of fighting a war alongside a new Japanese joint command. It is, according to defence secretary Lloyd Austin, “the most significant change to US Forces Japan since its creation and one of the strongest improvements in our military ties with Japan in 70 years”.
It marks the latest move away from the pacifist policy written into the Japanese constitution after the second World War, which has been effectively abandoned over the past decade. This week also saw the most high-level discussion between the US and Japan of “extended deterrence”, Washington’s commitment to use nuclear weapons to deter attacks on its allies.
The extra funding for the Philippines’ military and coast guard reflects the deepening of Washington’s security partnership with Manila since Ferdinand Marcos Jr became president in 2022. Japan and the Philippines recently signed an agreement on security and defence co-operation.
Beijing views all these developments as part of a US-led effort to create an Asian version of Nato to contain and encircle China. It accused Washington and Tokyo of “creating imaginary enemies” and warned Manila that it risked “greater insecurity for itself” by accepting the US funding.
It is China’s own actions, however, that have driven some of its neighbours to seek the protection of closer security arrangements with the US. Beijing has sought to assert sovereignty over parts of the South and East China Seas by seizing small islands, reefs and maritime features despite a 2016 ruling by the Permanent Court of Arbitration in the Hague that its claims had no basis under international law.
A confrontation between the Chinese coast guard and the Philippines navy near the disputed Second Thomas Shoal in June turned violent, leaving a Philippine sailor injured. The two sides subsequently reached a provisional agreement but the underlying dispute is unresolved.
The military buildup in the region risks escalating into a so-called “security dilemma” with actions designed to increase the security of one side provoking reactions from the other side which have the effect of decreasing that security. While the US and China are shoring up their strategic positions, it is essential that they focus on their diplomatic relationship and deepen their dialogue.