Is Japan the “Britain” of East Asia? A Geopolitical Analysis of Japan’s Long-term Strategy on the Korean Peninsula

• Main Author: Young-Hwan Shin
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: UNISCI 2020-01-01
• Series: Revista UNISCI
• Subjects: japan; korean peninsula; geopolitics; balancer; insularity; seapower
• Online Access: http://www.unisci.es/is-japan-the-britain-of-east-asia-a-geopolitical-analysis-of-japans-long-term-strategy-on-the-korean-peninsula/

Japan’s geographical location is often compared to that of the United Kingdom in Europe, and its strategic role is expected to correspond to Britain’s as a balancer that has endeavored to keep the European world from being dominated by a hegemony or hegemonic coalition of powers. his geographical resemblance infers that Japan will play the role of a British balancer in East Asia. However, Japan differs from the UK geopolitically. If it were a balancer, Japan would welcome a more stable Korean Peninsula able to manage unexpected provocation from the North. Instead, Japan is skeptical about today’s changing inter-Korean situation, following the Panmunjom Declaration on 27 April 2018. It needs to be understood that Japan has lain within a different geopolitical environment from Britain in Europe, which influenced different strategic choices in the history of East Asia.