But the realities of life in an East Asia that is still highly unstable forced both Clinton and Hashimoto to confront the need for military strength in an unfriendly environment. For Japan, still inhibited by pacifist sentiment and the apprehensions of the countries it conquered in World War II, that means continued reliance on the alliance with the United States and U.S. forces in Japan.
The ominous rumblings from North Korea, including the attempt to make nuclear weapons and the abrogation of the 1953 armistice agreement, should arouse the concern of any Japanese leader.
Since the death of Kim Il-sung, North Korea has been if anything even more unpredictable. Its attempts to isolate South Korea by luring the United States into bilateral talks continue unabated and must be rejected. North Korea's compliance with the agreement to end nuclear weapons production can't be taken for granted. Another invasion of the South, although improbable, cannot be ruled out.
If North Korea wasn't enough of a problem, there is China, which has become more bellicose as the struggle to succeed the ailing Deng Xiaoping intensifies. Beijing's missile tests and its military exercises before last month's presidential election on Taiwan were a crude attempt to intimidate the voters. Those efforts failed to prevent the election of Lee Teng-hui, but they indicate that China will try to throw its military weight around increasingly as other issues arise. China still refuses to renounce the use of force in achieving reunification with Taiwan.
In the face of these problems, a U.S. military withdrawal from East Asia would be irresponsible. Clinton has quite properly allayed such concerns by vowing to maintain 100,000 U.S. troops in the area, including 47,000 in Japan. Although the land area occupied by U.S. forces on Okinawa will be reduced by 20 percent, there will be no corresponding reduction in the number of troops on the island or elsewhere in Japan. It is also encouraging that Japan in return has agreed to provide U.S. forces with logistical support in emergencies.
Hashimoto's statement that "it is because of the Japan-U.S. security treaty that ... we have been able to lead peaceful lives" was a welcome explanation of the seldom-acknowledged need for Japan to maintain the alliance even after the end of the Cold War in its own interests. Although Japan has its own forces, they are insufficient to meet the nation's security needs and are unlikely to be strengthened enough to make U.S. support unnecessary.
It has often been observed that the relationship between the United States and Japan is the most important in the world. That relationship has experienced severe strains, particularly under the Clinton administration, with its emphasis on correcting the imbalance in U.S.-Japan trade. There are many people in both countries who fail to appreciate the importance of preserving the alliance. The Clinton-Hashimoto meeting was an essential step toward stopping the erosion.
Rupert E. Phillips,CEO
John M. Flanagan,Editor & Publisher
David Shapiro,Managing Editor
Diane Yukihiro Chang,Senior Editor & Editorial Page Editor
Frank Bridgewater & Michael Rovner,Assistant Managing Editors
A.A. Smyser,Contributing Editor