The Pacific Islands and Japan: Promoting the Rule of Law and Justice in a Free and Open Indo-Pacific
Lei Nishiuwatoko
Lei Nishiuwatoko is a young professional at the East-West Center in Washington and an incoming MS candidate at the Walsh School of Foreign Service at Georgetown University.
The views expressed in this publication are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the policies or positions of the Pacific Islands Development Program or the East-West Center.
Featured photo courtesy of Jaison Lin via Unsplash.
Since the late Prime Minister Shinzo Abe coined the idea of a “Free and Open Indo-Pacific” (FOIP) in 2016, the idea has proliferated across foreign policy thinking in the United States and Indo-Pacific. The notion of a FOIP ascribes to establishing a rules-based international order on the principles of free trade, freedom of navigation, and rule of law. The FOIP symbolizes a departure from the post-Cold War international order, where China places itself under the limelight as the primary adversary disrupting peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific.
The Pacific Islands are a key arena where the US FOIP is exercised, primarily given the countries’ expansive geographic reach; the exclusive economic zones of the 23 Pacific Island countries constitute around 10 percent of the world’s total ocean surface area, over 10 million square miles. Key to maintaining a FOIP in the Pacific Islands are neighboring middle powers, namely, Japan.
Japan has a significant opportunity to advance its strategic interests, as articulated through its FOIP, by forging strong partnerships with the Pacific Islands. Through bilateral collaboration to enforce the rule of law in the maritime domain and to promote environmental and nuclear justice, Japan can pave the way for mutually beneficial cooperation.
Japan’s Free and Open Indo-Pacific Framework
Japan’s FOIP framework fundamentally aims to establish a rules-based international order on the principles of free trade, freedom of navigation, and the rule of law. To achieve this, Japan advocates for establishing regulatory frameworks to foster free and fair economic areas, enhancing economic and infrastructural connectivity over the Indian and Pacific Oceans, building capacity for improved governance, and providing resources for maritime security and law enforcement.
One pillar of Japan’s FOIP is “multi-layered connectivity.” Within this, Japan aims for the Pacific Islands to overcome vulnerability and enhance connectivity “through integrated development of various infrastructure (projects).”For example, the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) has given grant aid for Palau to build its new international airport. Moreover, Japan highlights the strategic significance of the Pacific Islands as pivotal intersections for sea lanes, and has expressed concern about securing access to these vital routes. Additionally, Japan prioritizes maintaining the capacity to import natural resources, such as fish, from the Pacific Islands, as a country that relies heavily on fisheries within its exclusive economic zones.
The Japan Ministry of Defense’s FOIP approach prioritizes “contributing to the security of sea lanes and building mid- to long-term relations with defense officials” in the Pacific Islands. This is facilitated through initiatives such as organizing the Japan-Pacific Islands Defense Dialogue, aiding in capacity-building efforts for the Papua New Guinea Defense Force, and promoting port calls and aircraft visits by the Japan Self-Defense Force in the region.
Since 1997, a key forum in which Japan collaborates with the Pacific Islands is the Pacific Islands Leaders Meeting (PALM), a series of meetings where Japan and the Pacific Islands have established roadmaps to collaboration. In an era of US-China tensions, Japan has been a reliable middle power for “PICs to build capacity without unduly offending China or the United States.” Beyond PALM, there have been smaller-level meetings. For example, in February 2024, the Japanese foreign minister visited Samoa for the first time and visited Fiji for an interim ministerial meeting, the first of the sort in the region.
Enforcing the Rule of Law
Enforcing the rule of law in the maritime domain is a key area that Japan and the Pacific Islands can collaborate on to ensure a FOIP. In the past, Japan and the Pacific Islands have cooperated on maritime domain awareness initiatives. For instance, the Japan Coast Guard dispatched officers to Kiribati to offer technical support to the Kiribati Police Service. Moreover, Japan has partnered with the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime to strengthen measures against maritime crime in the Pacific Islands.
During a PALM meeting, Japan committed to enhancing maritime safety and law enforcement capacity by providing training to combat illegal, unreported, and unregulated fishing to 11 Pacific Island countries. Additionally, Japan supplied equipment to improve maritime security in the region and contributed developmental aid aimed at conserving the marine environment. Despite the Pacific Islands not facing the same threat to territorial integrity as Japan does with China in the Senkaku Islands, both countries share a vested interest in upholding democratic norms and order in the Pacific Ocean.
Nuclear and Environmental Justice
Japan and the Pacific Islands can further collaborate on interlinked nuclear and environmental justice issues and foster bilateral solidarity. This collaboration will not only promote the principles of FOIP but also enhance resilience in confronting challenges posed by climate change in the Pacific.
Environmental justice will emerge as a critical concern shared by both Japan and the Pacific Islands as climate change exacerbates. Japan, known for having one of the world’s highest tsunami hazards, and the Pacific Islands, already grappling with the repercussions of rising sea levels, face significant challenges. In the past, tsunamis in Japan have posed threats to inundate low-lying Pacific Islands, with alert zones spanning from Indonesia to the Americas.
Environmental justice is intricately linked with nuclear justice. To enhance Japan’s energy self-sufficiency, the country has developed a robust nuclear energy infrastructure. However, this has become a point of contention, particularly following Japan’s announcement regarding the release of water from the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant into the Pacific Ocean. For instance, Niue expressed in August that the discharge would become “a transboundary and intergenerational issue.” Tuvalu reportedly felt “concerned, dismayed, disappointed, and somewhat surprised” by Tokyo’s decision.
The South Pacific Nuclear Free Zone Treaty provides the framework for engagement on nuclear issues in the region, underscoring the determination to maintain the region free of pollution caused by radioactive wastes and other radioactive matter. Following the 8th PALM, Japan has pledged to enhance disaster relief capabilities and bolster energy security in the Pacific Islands. This includes projects such as the introduction of hybrid power generation systems in Pacific Island countries, covering Fiji, Tuvalu, Kiribati, the Federated States of Micronesia, and the Republic of the Marshall Islands.
Beyond nuclear power, nuclear weapons represent another area where Japan and the Pacific Islands share a somber history. The atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki by the United States marked the end of World War II. Following the conclusion of WWII in 1945, the United States initiated its atomic testing program in the Republic of the Marshall Islands, where, between 1946 and 1958, “the (United States) detonated (the equivalent) of 1.7 Hiroshima bombs every day for 12 years.” Remediating this relationship, even partially, should be a priority for the United States in addressing its nuclear testing legacy and an area of future US-Pacific Islands-Japan trilateral cooperation. The United States must play a key role in this endeavor, acknowledging past nuclear injustices and striving for reconciliation.
Ally Cooperation
Japan and the Pacific Islands can collaborate on enforcing the rule of law in the maritime domain and on environmental and nuclear justice. This effort will be particularly successful if Japan incorporates key allies into this effort, especially other members of the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue (Quad). These members include the US, Australia, and India, who all share a common vision of a FOIP. The Quad’s Indo-Pacific Partnership for Maritime Domain Awareness project targets the Pacific Islands and smaller countries as a “technology and training initiative to enhance maritime domain awareness in the Indo-Pacific region and to bring increased transparency to its critical waterways.” With the support of Quad allies, Japan and the Pacific Islands stand poised to cultivate a symbiotic relationship wherein both parties can harmoniously promote the rule of law and climate and nuclear justice to work towards a FOIP.