Author: Yoichi Funabashi

U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton looks “presidential.” She carries herself in a dignified and distinguished manner befitting that of the ideal vision of a president.

This is shown in her concise comments, solid logic, thoughtfulness, physical and mental toughness and her awareness of her role as her nation’s chief diplomat.

Her responses to my interview earlier this week were straightforward; she did not evade any question.

She paused briefly at one point to sip her tea, taken with no sugar or milk, and did not forget to smile before continuing.

While the interview lasted only about 10 minutes, her presence and answers spoke volumes and demonstrated that American diplomacy would be a vigorous one as she works in tandem with President Barack Obama.

East Asia is now at peace. Relations between the United States and China as well as between Japan and the United States are generally good.

However, the global economic crisis has taken a direct hit on Asian economies that have long been dependent on exports to the United States.

Fighting in Afghanistan and neighboring Pakistan is on the verge of becoming a factor for global instability.

A number of transnational threats–such as terrorism, proliferation of weapons of mass destruction and global warming–are spreading.

The Asian policy of the Obama administration is not limited regionally to peace and prosperity of an area created by Asian nations together with the United States as a member of the Asia-Pacific region. Rather, the policy is part of Obama’s overall strategy to bring about global stability and economic growth together with Asia.

The four nations on Clinton’s first overseas trip as secretary of state–Japan, Indonesia, South Korea and China–were chosen because they are considered important partners for the United States in its global strategy.

A hidden aim of her visit is the pursuit of possible future policy discussions with China.

At a speech given in New York at the Asia Society last week, Clinton chose to focus on the possibility of working with China as a partner rather than consider Beijing’s rise as a threat.

Still, she must first determine what, if any, barriers exist toward that partnership and the extent to which any such partnership can function.

The praise for China’s involvement in the issue of North Korea’s nuclear weapons, in particular, the role played by China in the six-party talks, is as high as it was under the previous U.S. administration.

In addition, there is growing praise within the U.S. government for Beijing’s other international contributions, including participation in U.N.-sponsored peacekeeping operations. In this new century, China has actively participated in such operations mainly in Africa.

During the interview, Clinton also made clear her intent to discuss with China’s officials the possibility of deeper engagement on the issues of nuclear nonproliferation and arms control.

The Obama administration has indicated a willingness to move forward on arms control through such efforts as working with Russia on a new nuclear arms control treaty to replace the Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (START-1), which will expire this December. In addition, Obama is pushing for early ratification of the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty so that the treaty can go into effect.

With China continuing to post double-digit annual growth in its military spending, a key point for the Obama administration in its arms control efforts will be whether China’s nuclear weapons can be brought into any arms control regime.

Clinton said: “One of the issues I intend to discuss with the Chinese (is) about the possibility of their becoming more involved in the nonproliferation and arms control, as the Russians historically have been.”

Clinton’s comments hinted at the first steps toward shifting from the arms control regime centered on the United States and the former Soviet Union, which has existed since the Cold War, to one centered around the United States, China, Russia and India.

In that context, the question facing Japanese diplomacy will be whether it can find the opportunity to link nuclear arms control with conventional arms reduction and arms control in Northeast Asia while keeping an eye on North Korean moves toward denuclearization and the overall nonproliferation process.

Clinton’s statements also indicated that the Obama administration places high expectations on Japan’s role in the development sector.

Soon after becoming secretary of state, Clinton characterized the three main pillars of U.S. foreign policy as the “three D’s”–defense, diplomacy and development.

In her Asia Society speech, Clinton said: “Too often, development is regarded as peripheral to our larger foreign policy objectives. This will not be the case in the Obama administration. We will energetically promote development.”

Fifty years have passed since development policy was construed as a means of countering the spread of communism during the Vietnam War era.

The United States is now pushing development as a means of fighting terrorism.

One indication of the expectations placed on Japan in terms of development was Clinton’s meeting with Sadako Ogata, president of the Japan International Cooperation Agency, during her stay in Tokyo and her praise for Ogata’s efforts in the development front.

The previous Bush administration improved relations with China and Japan simultaneously. Clinton said she would explore “opportunities for a trilateral dialogue” among Japan, the United States and China wherein the three countries would discuss policies on global issues of common concern, particularly with regard to environmental problems.

Japan should undertake a diplomacy that encourages both the United States and China to actively engage in such a process.

The Obama administration will not have the leeway given to previous administrations because it was born amid a global economic crisis as well as a crisis for capitalism.

The Obama administration’s emphasis on “smart power” marks the beginning of a new era of diplomacy and development, in which issues are resolved as much as possible through consultation with nations with political leadership and the ability to implement policies, regardless of whether they are allies.

It will be an era that will test Japan’s diplomacy, especially its political leadership and ability to deliver, which must lie at the core of that diplomacy.

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The original interview transcript may be found here. This article originally appeared in Asahi Shimbun.