ABSTRACT
This chapter examines Japan's relations with Southeast Asia during the Cold War. It analyses the continuities and changes in Tokyo's relations with the Association of South-east Asian Nations (ASEAN) region in the post-Cold War era. The chapter assesses Japan's approach to the following issues in which it competes with China in Southeast Asia: Official Development Assistance (ODA), the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB), infrastructural development, the Mekong sub-region, and the disputed South China Sea. ODA was an important instrument of Japanese foreign policy when Southeast Asia was reeling from the Asian financial crisis (AFC) of 1997–1998. The AFC was an unprecedented crisis for Southeast Asia both economically and politically. ODA, human security and its allied concept of "peace-building" have become a template of Tokyo's foreign policy toward Southeast Asia. The chapter concludes that Japan is indeed playing a "Great Game" with China in Southeast Asia.
