ABSTRACT
Chapter 18 began by describing the watershed decision by the Japanese government to despatch minesweepers to the Persian Gulf and thereafter personnel on UN-sanctioned peacekeeping operations. Building upon this jarring image, Chapters 19, 20 and 21 have demonstrated the dichotomy between Japan’s traditional low-key, financial contributions and its growing visible and human contribution to the various global institutions. In short, and as the vignette in Chapter 18 illustrated, Japan has begun to behave internationally as a recognized and responsible actor, both despite and because of the norms of bilateralism and Asianism.
