The Status of Japan-China relations and the United Kingdom

Chiune Sugihara, a Japanese diplomat based in the Japanese consulate in Kaunas,

Whilst the EU is preoccupied with challenges posed from the eastern and southern fronts as well as from within including ‘Brexit’, so much has been happening in East Asia, including amongst others the fourth nuclear testing and missile launch by North Korea.

How do the two major powers in the region, Japan and China, interact and possibly cooperate with each other in the political and security fields? Are there any noticeable changes in China’s behaviour in the South and East China Seas? How is China reacting to the Philippines’ initiative to peacefully solve their maritime dispute through international arbitration? What kind of role could be played by the UK in upholding the fundamental value of the rule of law? Or is the tyranny of distance and a tug of war amongst EU members for economic benefits preventing both the UK and the EU from making anything more than marginal contributions?

Given the recent slowdown of growth and the massive flight of capital, what kind of future holds for China’s economic relations with the UK and Japan? How is Japanese business reacting in light of its experience with its most important neighbour? Is George Solos right in predicting the hard landing?

Contributors: Shingo Yamagami is the Acting Director General of the Japan Institute of International Affairs (JIIA).

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