A Conversation with former U.S. Diplomat Grant Newsham on Shinzo Abe

With this conversation, we are joined by former United States Diplomat, Business Executive and Marine Corps Colonel Mr. Grant Newsham. A Senior fellow with the Center for Security Policy and the Yorktown Institute, Mr. Newsham discusses the legacy of former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and future of the Indo Pacific Region. Abe’s long serving foreign policy adviser and speechwriter, Mr. Tomohiko Taniguchi, said Abe “understood Japan needed to enhance its economy, reinvested in the alliance with the United States, and expand its diplomatic ties by reaching out to Australia, and India.” How successful was he with each of these objectives? As the longest serving Prime Minister in Japanese history, Mr. Newsham spotlights Abe as a Statesman.  Shinzo Abe realized that without the American Alliance and U.S. presence, Japan’s prospects would be far less. Commensurate with his realization and work for change, Mr. Newsham discusses specific changes to the Japanese Constitution advocated by Abe.  He moves on to discuss Abe's effort to transform Japanese Maritime Defense Force (MDSF) from one of defense to that of power projection.  Abe is said to have coined the phrase, “A Free and Open Indo-Pacific”.  What did he mean by this phrase?  In September of 1954, the United States, France, Great Britain, New Zealand, Australia, the Philippines, Thailand and Pakistan formed the Southeast Asia Treaty Organization, or SEATO, to prevent communism from spreading in the region. With the increasing threat of Communist China, Newsham talks about the Quad transforming into a modern day SEATO.  In 2007, Shinzo Abe initiated the Quad, the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue between Australia, India, Japan, and the United States. What is the Quad? In closing, Mr. Newsham spotlights the future of the Indo-Pacific Region.