Japan Should Moderate Reaction to Russia’s Move in the South China Sea

Russia’s new military agreement with Vietnam agreed in April 2018, which mapped out cooperation between the long-time friends until 2020, caused concern in Japan. An increased Russian presence brought into conflict two different foreign policies of Shinzo Abe’s government in Japan - maintaining a strong posture on power plays in the South China Sea and being careful to avoid confrontation with Russia.

However, in this comment feature, the author argued that Moscow’s agreement with Vietnam was not worth spoiling Japanese-Russian relations over.

French Institute of International Relations: IFRI Policy Papers Russie.Nei.Visions, No.104 [October 2017]: Japan-Russia: The Limits of a Strategic Rapprochement http://www.europeansources.info/record/japan-russia-the-limits-of-a-strategic-rapprochement/

Centre for Eastern Studies (OSW): OSW Analyses, 21.12.16: Russia–Japan: No breakthrough on the Kuril Islands http://www.europeansources.info/record/russia-japan-no-breakthrough-on-the-kuril-islands/

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