CSIS Report on Transforming the US-Japan Alliance

The Japan Chair at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) issued a report on July 12 called "New Roles and Missions -- Transforming the US-Japan Alliance."

The report says that a key principle of the U.S.-Japan Security Treaty—the notion that the United States is primarily responsible for regional security and that Japan plays a secondary role—appears increasingly anachronistic when Japan is exploring new ways to expand its contributions to international security.

The joint statement released during the recent Bush-Koizumi summit reaffirms a strategic commitment to define the security relationship in a global context and also welcomes advances in bilateral security coordination that will better position the alliance to meet new threats.

CSIS says that the great potential to expand Japan’s role in the alliance confronts numerous logistical, institutional and legal questions that could affect the extent to which Japan can implement envisioned roles and missions.

To read and download the report, go to http://www.csis.org/media/csis/pubs/060712_jcp.pdf