ABSTRACT
Tokyo and Beijing are no longer aiming to forge a “win-win” partnership; increasingly, they are competing for economic, military and diplomatic influence in Asia and beyond. As Japanese and Chinese governments have struggled from one problem to the next over the past decade or more, the bilateral relationship has deteriorated visibly. Popular sentiment in both countries has reflected increasing skepticism and suspicion over the motives of the other, curbing the latitude of diplomats to compromise. Political leaders shifted from talking to each other to advocating their side of the dispute of the moment in regional and global settings. And despite Japan’s longstanding alliance with the United States, China seems intent on overshadowing Japan in the shifting military balance in Asia.
