#5 Science Council Reform - MALABAR Exercise - BIDEN's Win, Wait & Watch situation for Japan - ASEAN Annual Summit.
HIGHLIGHTS: 1st Nov –15th Nov.
● Suga calls for Science Council reform.
● The Suga government faces a row of questions over the Science Council and the dispute remains unsettled.
● Japan’s navy participates in the Malabar exercises hosted by India in the Bay of Bengal.
● Japan’s Nikkei hits the highest level since 1991.
● Asia Pacific countries including Japan, China & ASEAN members sign the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership trade deal.
1. POLITICS
● In the budget committee meeting Q&A, Suga stood by his decision of not appointing the recommended members by the Science Council committee. He cited human resource management as a reason for excluding the members. He refused charges of biased appointments while pointing to the fact that a person who opposed the Security legislation law was also amongst the appointed 99 members. His speech also touched upon reform of the Science Council. The Science Council is a representative organisation of Japan's academic community that makes policy recommendations independent of the government.
● In the first Diet session of Suga's administration, the prime minister and Cabinet members refrained from answering many questions. Increasingly, since the Abe administration, cabinet members and government bureaucrats have refused to respond to controversial matters in the Diet, according to Keita Sakurai, an associate professor at Ritsumeikan University. He has researched the number of times the phrase, “I want to refrain from replying,” was used in the Diet. He feels it is disrespectful to the people more than it is to the Diet.
● For the second time in the referendum, residents voted against the Osaka metropolis plan; Suga, while speaking on the Osaka Metropolis plan, said, “It is important to discuss revitalizing the region while recovering the economy.” The Osaka Metropolis plan aims to transform Osaka Prefecture from an urban prefecture into a metropolis.
● Secretary-General Seiko Noda of the Liberal Democratic Party talked about the US presidential elections this week. Pointing to the fact that Kamala Harris is the first woman to be elected to the Vice Presidency, she said that she hopes for a change in the participation rate of women in leadership positions, which are also considerably low in Japan.
● Japan entered a new era when Naruhito became emperor last year. This month, Akishino was declared the Crown Prince, in a day-long ceremony attended by the royal family, Prime Minister Suga and foreign representatives. Naruhito's only girl child became ineligible to be enthroned as the next heir paving the way to Akishino.
Centuries ago women rulers were prevalent in Japanese society but over modern times, Japanese law established a male-only succession rule barring women from being enthroned.
● In efforts to promote digitization of public administration, Suga has asked to accelerate the integration of driver's licenses and My Number identification cards. My Number in Japan is used to simplify administrative procedures by assigning everyone a single number to be used for social security, tax records, etc. The government also plans to link an individual’s My Number to their accounts at financial institutions. Starting in 2022, every smartphone will also have a built-in My Number card function.
2. ECONOMY
● The Ministry of Finance disbursed a 3 trillion yen grant to local governments to tackle the coronavirus pandemic. The grant has been issued to ensure economic support for families affected by the coronavirus, provision of medical facilities, and prevention of infection. Local governments are required by law to decide on how they spend the money. Yet, the Finance Ministry has increasingly become wary about the use of grant money after some local governments started using it for lighting up ski resorts and towers to show gratitude toward healthcare workers.
● The results of the US presidential election saw stocks on the Nikkei index rally hitting the highest level since 1991.
● Reuters reports that despite the pandemic effect, most Japanese firms want to go ahead with the Tokyo Olympics next summer. They believe it will help boost the economy. Suga, who had vowed to revive the economy by promoting tourism, is looking at hosting the Tokyo Olympics in 2021 by all means.
● Suga announced that the Council on Economic & Fiscal Policy will be the main advisory body of his cabinet and serve as the “command center” for economic policymaking. During Abe’s administration, the influence of the council was diluted by other newly established councils with members from the ministry of economy, trade, and industry (METI). This step taken by Suga is seen as a measure to curb the influence of METI on economic policymaking efforts.
3. FOREIGN AFFAIRS
● Suga congratulated Biden on winning the US presidential election. He said that he hopes to work with Biden to strengthen the Japan-US alliance and security in the Indo-Pacific region. Chief cabinet secretary Katsunobu Kato said he hoped both nations could work on shared interests, such as climate change and innovative technology. Japanese Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi said that getting cooperation from the US on the above issues is key to Japan's foreign policy.
● The Japanese government is looking to renew the agreement on stationing US military bases in Japan by one year rather than the usual 5-year term. This is due to escalating costs.
The U.S.-Japan Security Treaty signed in 1951 enables U.S. troops to remain in Japanese soil for maintenance of international peace and security in the Japan area.
● It is anticipated that the Biden administration will take a tough stand against China's human rights violations in Xinjiang and Hong Kong. This could force the Japanese government to balance its interests between the United States and China. Biden is likely to bring the US back into the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) & Paris Agreement from which Trump had withdrawn. Japan is a signatory to TPP & with Suga's recent pledge of achieving zero carbon emission by 2050, the Japanese government is likely to wait and watch as events play out in the US with a Biden administration taking charge early next year .
● History continues to cast a dark shadow on Japan-South Korea ties. Recently, South Korean courts began the process of seizing assets of two Japanese companies, putting them up for sale. This came after the Japanese side failed to abide by the court’s order on war-time forced labour. Japan believes that it compensated South Korean war-time labour claims as part of a 1965 bilateral agreement. But a dispute broke out in 2018 when the South Korean Supreme court ordered two Japanese companies to pay compensation to wartime labourers. The seizure of assets violates international law and can further damage the Japan-South Korea ties. However, it is hoped that Suga will resort to moderate measures thereby improving the bilateral relationship.
● Tokyo is preparing for the visit of China’s State Councilor & Foreign minister Wang Yi’s visit to Japan in late November. In the meetings to be held with Prime minister Yoshihide Suga and Foreign minister Toshimitsu Motegi, it is anticipated that discussion will be held on coronavirus countermeasures, resuming business travel between the two nations, restraining the movement of Chinese vessels around the disputed Senkaku island, along with the postponed visit of Xi Jinping to Japan.
● Participating in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations annual summit which was held via videoconference, Suga pledged to support ASEAN nations in addressing the pandemic situation and enhancing security as China's growing assertiveness is felt in the region. Alongside Suga, the ASEAN leaders affirmed to promote engagement and cooperation in the wider Indo-Pacific region.
4. DEFENCE CAPABILITIES
● The first phase of Malabar exercise in the Bay of Bengal witnessed the participation of navies of India, US, Australia and Japan. The second phase is scheduled to be in mid-November in the Arabian Sea. As stated by officials, the complex exercises including surface, anti-submarine and anti-air warfare operations, cross-deck flying and weapon firing exercises will help build operational compatibilities.
● The key component of Japan's security in the southern islands, where China's expansionism is increasingly felt, is the Air Self-Defense Force's F-15 fighter jets. Because of a deficit in the budget and escalating costs, the plan to procure a fleet of 20 jets might come to a halt. The escalating costs are in a way due to the U.S. government’s Foreign Military Sales (FMS) program by which the Japanese ministry must abide by the cost price stated by the U.S. side. The FMS program facilitates sales of U.S. arms, defense equipment, defence services, and military training to foreign governments.
5. ENVIRONMENT
● Toshiba enters “the virtual power plant business”, aiming to match power supply with the demand. The virtual power plant bridges the gap between renewable energy producers and the market that has been troubled by gaps in supply planning & prices fluctuations. This comes as a solution to promote renewable energy business by achieving a stable power supply without incurring loss to the company and is a step towards Suga’s 2050 zero-carbon goal.
● Apart from this, Japan is exploring options to shift to usage of hydrogen fuel. Though shifting to renewable energy (solar, wind) seems to address the concern, it might not be completely plausible in densely populated and resource-poor Japan. Along with renewable sources, hydrogen is considered indispensable, said Motohiko Nishimura from Kawasaki Heavy Industries Ltd. It is the only company in Japan which has been developing a global supply chain for hydrogen. It has been estimated that Japan will require 36 million tons of liquefied hydrogen by 2030 to be carbon neutral in 2050.
● The environment-friendly jet fuel(SAF) was first used in ANA domestic flights. The usage of SAF lowers carbon dioxide emissions by 90% than the existing jet fuels.
● “Utilizing nuclear power is an option to achieve a carbon-free society but Suga responded of no immediate plans to expand nuclear plants.”Yukio Edano, the top representative from the opposition Constitutional Democratic Party pointed to Suga’s contradictory statement and criticized the government for the lack in the clear roadmap for achieving zero carbon by 2050.
6. Other Stories of Interest
● The lockdown during the pandemic enabled company workers to telecommute. It has helped many Japanese citizens realize the pleasure of living in a stress-free rural society and is changing the migratory dynamics of the country. This will be a boost to one of Suga’s mandated tasks of revitalizing rural areas.
● Gearing up for the World Expo 2025, at the Osaka forum, Professor Shinya Hashizume of Osaka Prefecture University stressed on imbibing the Shibusawa spirit to generate youthful ideas in Osaka. He called for the Expo to be a place for utilizing AI & robotics to experience a new lifestyle in the ageing Japanese society. World Expo 2025 is to be held in Osaka-Japan. The main goal of which is to achieve the Sustainable development Goals (SDGs) set by the United Nations. Shibusawa Eiichi, who is acclaimed to be the "father of Japanese capitalism", spearheaded the introduction of Western capitalism to Japan after the Meiji Restoration.
● Japan claims sovereignty over South Korea administered Takeshima islets. The data from the U.S. National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) depicts Takeshima Island as Japan's territory under the San Francisco Peace treaty, which was pointed out by Funasugi from Japan Institute of International Affairs. He said, “Proof from the third nation cannot be used to claim sovereignty over the region in a territorial dispute but this is a significant finding”.
The San Francisco Peace Treaty was drafted by the US to define Japan’s territory following the end of World War II.
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