EDITORIAL: Uncertain road ahead

Domestic and foreign policy invariably overlap in this age of globalization. No country is immune.

Japan is grappling with some tough domestic issues: the consumption tax rate, pension reform and the low birthrate, among other things.

There is a danger of Japan becoming too inward-looking and neglecting to work on its foreign policy strategy. That would diminish the nation's accomplishments on the home front. Yet, there has been little mention of foreign policy and international relations in the campaigning for Sunday's Upper House election.

Take national security, for instance. In its National Security Strategy report for 2010, the U.S. government notes that, in addition to traditional military threats, new menaces now confronting the world include growing fiscal deficits, nuclear terrorism, climate change and infectious diseases.

All these threats need to be dealt with in a global context. Only through international cooperation can Japan hope to build a stable future promised by the ruling Democratic Party of Japan and the opposition Liberal Democratic Party.

We fully agree that since the Japan-U.S. alliance is indispensable to our security, we must deal squarely with problems concerning the U.S. military presence in Okinawa Prefecture. But now, more than ever, we need to take a broader look at the threats facing us. We need to present a foreign policy strategy to the world that makes the most of globalization and reflects ideas that will contribute to deepening our alliance with the United States.

Unless we improve our diplomatic skills, we may find ourselves incapable of dealing proactively with issues that affect our growth strategy, such as free trade agreements, intellectual property rights and climate change.

The synergy effect of domestic and foreign policies is most obvious with respect to free trade agreements. If Japan proceeds with agrarian reform, this will lay the foundations for agreements with a broad range of partners. And if Japan applies its diplomatic skills effectively, that should help increase the viability of the growth strategy proposed by Your Party--that Japan review its trade regulations with the rest of Asia and establish common rules if needed.

The international community today has become more aware of the importance of soft power, an ability to gain compassion and backing of other countries. This trend provides a perfect opportunity for Japan to raise its international profile without leaning on a military or economic power.

The relative size of the Japanese economy will shrink in the years ahead. This is all the more reason for Japan to consider how best to exert its own soft power as a country with a democratic political system and with a mature society, unlike China.

In its campaign manifesto, the LDP cites Japan's advanced legal and health care systems as examples of soft power on which the country should capitalize. This is the sort of strategy for Japan that we would like to hear more of from the other political parties.

Beefing up the nation's foreign policy skills requires input from a broad spectrum of experts. The DPJ in the past proposed an "all Japan" team of seasoned bureaucrats, university and research institute personnel, local government officials and nongovernmental organization (NGO) members contributing to that end.

We propose the establishment of a suprapartisan think tank, independent of the government and the business community, as the core entity tasked with upgrading the nation's foreign policy skills. The entity should invite experts from abroad to make policy suggestions that will move the world. We believe Japan could use this new form of effort to shape its foreign policy.

--The Asahi Shimbun, July 6