Webb to go on “listening tour” in Japan
The U.S. and Japanese sides have met several times to discuss the still unresolved dispute over moving a Marine Corps base from one part of Okinawa from the other. No progress was reported, but insiders say that the Obama administration is waiting to allow the new Tokyo government time to sort out its internal and ...
The U.S. and Japanese sides have met several times to discuss the still unresolved dispute over moving a Marine Corps base from one part of Okinawa from the other.
No progress was reported, but insiders say that the Obama administration is waiting to allow the new Tokyo government time to sort out its internal and domestic problems and present its views before deciding whether to apply more pressure on the ruling Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ).
Meanwhile, Virginia Sen. Jim Webb, the chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations subcommittee on Asia, isn’t waiting for anybody and plans to travel to Tokyo, Okinawa, and Guam on a week-long trip starting Saturday.
The aim of Webb’s tour is to "listen carefully to the views of the current Japanese government, the leaders and citizens of Okinawa and Guam, and U.S. military leaders and personnel stationed in the Pacific region," his office said in a statement.
Webb’s trip to Japan was his own idea and not part of any coordinated administration diplomatic effort with Japan. As with his other Asia diplomacy, Webb is expected to express his own views, which may or may not line up with those of the Obama administration.
"Given his history of taking independent stances on certain issues, like Burma, officials at both State and DOD are probably going to warily watch his discussions with Tokyo," said Michael Auslin, scholar at the American Enterprise Institute, "If he concludes that the Obama administration’s position is the right one, however, that will likely put more pressure on Prime Minister Hatoyama to accede to the 2006 agreement."
Webb’s trip is also another step in his drive to increase the congressional role in Asia policymaking, which was not a priority for the previous subcommittee chair, Barbara Boxer (D-CA). Webb’s travel to Burma last summer drew fire from some, but his call for engaging the Burmese junta was later largely adopted by the Obama administration.
It remains to be seen whether his new trip will help resolve the U.S.-Japan basing dispute.
"Our alliance with Japan is a cornerstone of our strategic engagement in Asia," Assistant Secretary of State Kurt Campbell said in testimony before Webb’s committee last month. Campbell reiterated the U.S. policy that the 2006 agreement over the base was the best way forward, but also indicated that the U.S. side wanted to show patience and flexibility toward the DPJ.
"As we approach the 50th anniversary of the alliance, we will work closely with our friends in Japan to think creatively and strategically about the alliance," said Campbell, who was traveling in the region last week.
Webb has a long personal history with Japan, dating back to his military service and his time as a journalist. Most of his book The Emperor’s General, a historical novel focusing on Gen. Douglas McArthur, is set in postwar Japan
Josh Rogin covers national security and foreign policy and writes the daily Web column The Cable. His column appears bi-weekly in the print edition of The Washington Post. He can be reached for comments or tips at josh.rogin@foreignpolicy.com.
Previously, Josh covered defense and foreign policy as a staff writer for Congressional Quarterly, writing extensively on Iraq, Afghanistan, Guantánamo Bay, U.S.-Asia relations, defense budgeting and appropriations, and the defense lobbying and contracting industries. Prior to that, he covered military modernization, cyber warfare, space, and missile defense for Federal Computer Week Magazine. He has also served as Pentagon Staff Reporter for the Asahi Shimbun, Japan's leading daily newspaper, in its Washington, D.C., bureau, where he reported on U.S.-Japan relations, Chinese military modernization, the North Korean nuclear crisis, and more.
A graduate of George Washington University's Elliott School of International Affairs, Josh lived in Yokohama, Japan, and studied at Tokyo's Sophia University. He speaks conversational Japanese and has reported from the region. He has also worked at the House International Relations Committee, the Embassy of Japan, and the Brookings Institution.
Josh's reporting has been featured on CNN, MSNBC, C-Span, CBS, ABC, NPR, WTOP, and several other outlets. He was a 2008-2009 National Press Foundation's Paul Miller Washington Reporting Fellow, 2009 military reporting fellow with the Knight Center for Specialized Journalism and the 2011 recipient of the InterAction Award for Excellence in International Reporting. He hails from Philadelphia and lives in Washington, D.C. Twitter: @joshrogin
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