ABSTRACT
The liberal international order in Northeast Asia already faces salient threats from China and North Korea. But in an unfortunate turn of events, this order now faces a serious threat by none other than the United States, the supposed guarantor of this system and, of course, Japan’s closest ally. Even the alliance system, which has been the anchor of the liberal international order, has been challenged by the United States. Mr Trump is the first US president in post-war history to openly question the values of alliances. Trump’s potential re-election is of course far from the only foreign-policy issue that Tokyo must concern itself with in the coming year. Japan already feels exposed to numerous mounting challenges, particularly from China, but also from the Korean Peninsula and the wider Eurasian region. China’s presence is now felt in a variety of areas, ranging from the South China Sea and Indian Ocean to the North Pole and now South Pacific.
