U.S. To Sign Pact Giving Japan Increased Asian-Pacific Military Role

Despite concerns about aggravating tensions with China, the United States and Japan are scheduled to sign an agreement next week giving Japan a greater role in Asian-Pacific military security, a Pentagon official said Friday.

Kurt Campbell, the deputy assistant secretary of defense for Asian and Pacific affairs, said the agreement lays out general principles for increased U.S.-Japan military cooperation. It likely will be signed in New York City on Tuesday by Defense Secretary William Cohen, Secretary of State Madeline Albright and their Japanese counterparts.

The agreement will allow Japan to commit more airfields, ports, hospitals and materiel to U.S. forces in time of crisis.

Army Lt. Col. Robin Sakoda, a Japanese specialist for the Pentagon, said the agreement is “a big first step” in expanding military cooperation between the two nations.

It marks the first major revision to the bilateral military relationship between the two countries since 1978.

“The Japanese Self-Defense Forces will conduct such activities as intelligence gathering, surveillance and minesweeping, to protect lives and property and to ensure navigational safety. U.S. forces will conduct operations to restore peace and security in the areas surrounding Japan,” a draft of the agreement states.

Under the current arrangement, Japan plays more of a junior partner role, mainly giving financial aid and allowing U.S. bases to be located there.

Any increased Japanese military role will come under scrutiny in Tokyo to ensure there is no violation of the constitution, which bars Japanese troops for offensive purposes.

Some analysts see the pending agreement in terms of defending Taiwan against a Chinese assault..

“The obvious target of the new U.S.-Japan military alliance is China, a fact not lost on the Chinese leadership,” Chalmers Johnson, president of the Japan Policy Research Institute in San Diego, wrote in a recent commentary.

China views Taiwan as a rogue province, not an independent country. Taiwan became a flash point 18 months ago when China launched military exercises apparently designed to intimidate Taiwan’s voters before the island’s first direct presidential election. The United States responded by dispatching an aircraft carrier and other ships to the area.