Japan praises Vietnam's East Sea policy

On June 21, the Sankei Shimbun (Japan) published an article by a reporter in charge of China named Isao with the title: "Japan should learn from Vietnam".

The article encourages the Japanese government to emulate Vietnam's diplomatic approach in its maritime disputes with China.

The article said that the “mirror” for Japan today is Vietnam. Despite being inferior in military strength, on the diplomatic front, Vietnam’s intelligence is strongly promoted and does not appear to be inferior to China.

Regarding the East Sea issue, Vietnam uses multilateral diplomacy as a sharp attack. In recent years, Vietnam has continuously purchased new and upgraded weapons from the Russian Federation, while cooperating in oil and gas exploitation in oil wells in the East Sea, promoting cooperation in economic and defense fields with the US, building a naval base and a warship maintenance complex in Cam Ranh military port...

The achievements on the diplomatic front have helped Vietnam enhance its overall strength, while the bilateral relationship between Vietnam and China has not been interrupted or worsened. “So why doesn’t Prime Minister Noda Noshihiko’s administration learn from Vietnam’s methods?”, author Isao asked.

Also in the above article, author Isao believes that China's strategies and tactics are extremely diverse, taking place on the media, economic or even military fronts. Therefore, if the Tokyo administration or the Japanese government replicates the model of purchasing or nationalizing disputed islands, the Japan-China conflict will become greater than ever.

Currently, the dispute over the Senkaku Islands between Japan and China is increasingly tense. In response to the Tokyo Metropolitan Government's plan to purchase the islands, China has continuously focused its attacks on the city's mayor, Mr. Ishihara Shintarō.

Chinese media have described Ishihara Shintaro as a belligerent politician – a reincarnation of Japan’s kamikaze pilots in the Pacific War of World War II. He has called for Japan to be armed with nuclear weapons, which he said could be done within a year. “Such a politician could lead Japan into a new cycle of war,” Chinese media have said. In fact, criticism of the Tokyo governor is an indirect attack on the Japanese central government.

The article argues that if Tokyo remains fearful of China and maintains its current conciliatory diplomatic stance, it will be very difficult to maintain Japan's sovereignty over the islands.

According to journalist Isao, Japan should learn from the above method. In addition to its strategic alliance with the US, Japan should also strengthen cooperation with ASEAN countries and India, as well as seek to increase stability and friendship with Russia, a country capable of restraining China.

Japan still sees Russia as a threat to its north, and the two countries are in a dispute over the islands. This dispute is the main obstacle preventing the two countries from signing a peace treaty, more than 60 years after World War II ended. The four Kuril Islands were under Soviet control after the Soviet army captured them in the final days of World War II. The Japanese who lived on the islands were then expelled and replaced by Russians.

Meanwhile, the Russia-China relationship is considered warm and “solid as a rock”, if Japan wants to use Russia to restrain China and also wants to reclaim the Kuril Islands (called the Northern Territories by Japan), it will be very difficult. Therefore, Japan needs a flexible and long-term strategy.

According to Baodatviet - MD