ABSTRACT
The quiet transformation of Japan’s strategic posture in recent years is perhaps one of the most under-appreciated dimensions of Asian security. Tokyo has quietly demonstrated an increasing willingness to shoulder international and regional responsibilities commensurate with its economic status over the past decade. The nation’s persistent malaise following the bursting of the economic bubble in the early 1990s no doubt contributed to this inattention. Caught in the shadow of China’s rise, the international topic du jour, Tokyo’s reorientation has also failed to fire the imagination. But a lack of appreciation for Japan’s potential path toward becoming a genuine major power could very well disguise the risks and benefits that such an ascendance might produce in Asia.
