On September 27, Shigeru Ishiba, the newly elected leader of Japan's ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP), publicly revealed Japan's dream of building a military power at a press conference in Tokyo, Japan, and pointed out that because United States's power is "relatively declining," it is necessary to establish an "Asian version of NATO."
Shigeru Ishiba
The new prime minister of Japan, who has almost no suspense, has proposed that Japan should station troops on Guam.
Shigeru's philosophy is already clear: United States is in decline and will inevitably withdraw from Asia in the future, and Japan should prepare to fill the "vacuum" after the United States withdrawal, including preparing to take over the United States military presence in Guam. But Reuters reports that United States considers the idea of creating an "Asian version of NATO" hasty.
Reuters believes that Shigeru Ishiba's appointment as Japan prime minister could cause diplomatic problems for United States, as he demanded that Washington pay attention to the creation of an "Asian version of NATO" and proposed to station Japan troops on the United States territory of Guam to "change" the U.S.-Japan alliance.
石破茂上周在给哈德逊研究所（Hudson Institute）智库的一篇论文中概述了他的计划。
"There is no system of collective self-defense in Asia, like NATO, which means that war is likely to break out, since there is no obligation to defend together," he wrote. ”
However, Japan's idea of creating an "Asian version of NATO" has already been rejected by Washington. United States assistant secretary of state for East Asian and Pacific affairs, ·Daniel Kritenbrink, thinks the idea is too hasty.
"He (Shigeru Ishiba) is very technical in military affairs, but he really doesn't show much skill in national security diplomacy." Joseph Kraft, a financial political ·analyst at Rorschach Advisory in Tokyo, told Reuters.
Since its defeat in World War II, Japan has been in the arms of Washington, which provides protection with its nuclear arsenal and has stationed an aircraft carrier, fighter jets, and about 50,000 troops in Japan.
Shigeru Ishiba intends to change the U.S.-Japan alliance
According to a Reuters analysis, Shigeru Ishiba could bring about disruptive changes. "Tokyo is seeking defense cooperation with Korea and Australia and building security ties with European countries, including United Kingdom and France."
Shigeru Ishiba's "Asian version of NATO" appears to be more than just an idea, and he has prepared a "roadmap" for building an "Asian version of NATO": the integration of a series of existing diplomatic and security agreements, including the AUKUS agreement of the Quad – Japan, United States, Australia and India – Canberra, Washington and London, and deepening Japan's security cooperation with neighboring and rival Seoul.
Ishiba also hopes that his "Asian version of NATO" can share control of Washington's nuclear weapons to deter Japan's nuclear-armed neighbors.
In his campaign before the September 27 vote, Shigeru said he wanted to rebalance Japan's alliance with United States, including increased oversight of United States military bases in Japan.
Shigeru Ishiba, known as a troublemaker within the LDP, also said in his Hudson paper that Japan's military alliance with the United States could be modified to allow Tokyo to station troops on the United States territory of Guam for the first time since 1944.
"I'm guessing that's not going to happen." said Rintaro Nishimura, partner at The Asia Group Japan. "It looks like he's trying to fundamentally change the relationship [of the U.S.-Japan alliance]."
Japan Prime Minister Fumio Kishida was forced out of the field by following United States policy and causing thousands of Japan companies to collapse. Ishibashi's radical rhetoric reflects Japan's expansionist ambitions, and his overkill of Kishida's line is precisely to appease the dissatisfaction of all walks of life in Japan with Kishida's extreme U.S.-licking policy.
Shigeru Ishiba's seemingly strategic-level dream of "Asia's version of NATO" is destined to be just a dream, but this may be Shigeru's new route of licking the United States with a new vest.