Symposium: "Foreign Policy of Japan as a Maritime State in the 21st Century"
(Outline and Evaluation)

16 February 2001

1. Outline

(1) On Friday 9 February, a symposium titled "Foreign Policy of Japan as a Maritime State in the 21st Century" was successfully held at the conference room in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Approximately 150 persons attended the symposium.

(2) The participants of the symposium were Judge Soji Yamamoto of the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea, Professors Akihiko Tanaka and Akira Kodera of the University of Tokyo, Professor Shigeki Sakamoto of Kansai University, Professor Toshiyuki Tanaka of the Yokohama National University, and Professor Fumiko Nishizaki of Seikei University.

(3) At the outset, Senior Vice-Minister for Foreign Affairs Seishiro Eto gave a welcome speech in which he mentioned that the legal order of the sea, mainly laid down by the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, has been challenged by emerging new issues, and expressed his hope that active debate would be conducted in the course of the symposium to address these issues.

(4) In Keynote Address 1., "Japan as a Maritime State in the 21st Century," Professor Tanaka of the University of Tokyo stated that, in terms of international politics, the 21st century had already started since the end of the Cold War in the early 90s. He summed up the three key features of the 21st century as: the emergence of a diversity of players, the universalization of liberal democratic systems, and globalization. Professor Tanaka went on to state that all countries of the world could be broken down into three categories according to their stage of maturity based on these three criteria, and that Japan needs to develop its flexible foreign policy based on the stage of maturity of each country. Specifically, in the global arena, where the rules of the mature nations are dominant, Japan needs to assert its interests while making symbolic gestures through "word politics." From the regional standpoint, careful observation of the situation in the Asian region will continue to be required, since there is still the possibility of military conflicts in this area, where immature nations exist. Lastly, Professor Tanaka stated that an issue unique to Japan is the necessity of strengthening the Japan-US alliance as a maritime alliance in order to prepare for situations in areas surrounding Japan, while also developing multilateral diplomacy so as to make the "Mediterranean Seas" of East Asia--the Sea of Japan, the East China Sea, and the South China Sea--seas of harmony rather than seas of conflict.

(5) In Keynote Address 2., "The Development of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea and Japan's Response to It," Judge Yamamoto of the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea stated that in order to respond to the maritime conflicts in recent years, it is not sufficient to interpret rigidly provisions of maritime laws, such as the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, based on the context and how each provision was drafted. He remarked that it is necessary to apply maritime laws with more flexible and effective interpretations of each provision based on their objectives and practices by nations after those laws were established, and that it is necessary for us to utilize and develop maritime laws through such efforts. Judge Yamamoto added that from now on it would be more important for Japan to reflect its political will in international law by actively participating in the formation of maritime laws and other international laws through such processes. From this standpoint, we can learn very much from the traditional posture of the United States. The US first establishes its own interests in the form of domestic legislation. It then tries to turn this legislation into multilateral international law while insisting on the legislation's countervailing power to other nations by making full use of various legal constructs for legitimacy. In this way, said Judge Yamamoto, the US has been able to contribute greatly to the formation of the international law, especially the maritime law. One of the factors behind these contributions is the deep stratum of maritime law scholars in the US. Judge Yamamoto concluded by stating that Japan's maritime law scholars, as well as its general international law scholars, need to learn from the US, devote themselves to their studies, and work to cultivate a similar environment in Japan.

(6) After the Keynote Addresses, a lively panel discussion was held under the theme, "Japan as a Maritime State in the 21st Century--Overcoming the Gap Between Maritime Strategy and the Law of the Sea."

(7) The main topics discussed during the panel discussion included smuggling, piracy and other security issues, fishing, and other issues currently challenging the legal order of the sea based on the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea. During these discussions, it was repeatedly pointed out that the legal order of the sea has not been perfected with the entry into force of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, and that in order to establish a legal order of the sea that is advantageous to Japan, it is important for the country to actively assert its interests and positions to the international community in a convincing form, in the way the US has until now.

(8) The participants also asked questions on topics such as procedures for the settlement of dispute under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, creeping jurisdiction of coastal states, and the role of sea-lane defense in Japan's security, and lively discussions ensued.

2. Evaluation

(1) Increasing the people's understanding of the legal order of the sea based on the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea

1. An audience of as many as 150 participated in the symposium, and understanding of the legal order of the sea based on the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea and the various issues surrounding it was deepened. In addition, the intense interest of the participants in the legal order of the sea and related issues was felt in the enthusiasm with which the audience asked questions during the Q&A session.
2. The symposium is scheduled to be broadcast on NHK's Friday Forum on June 8, 2001, which boasts a viewership of about one million people. It is expected that the people's understanding of the legal order of the sea based on the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea will deepen further.

(2) Considerations of maritime issues from various viewpoints

At the symposium, the legal order of the sea based on the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea and the various issues surrounding it were discussed not only from a legal standpoint but also from international political standpoints. It was extremely significant that examination of these issues was further deepened in such a way.

(3) Offering guidelines for Japan's implementation and formation of a legal order of the sea

It was reaffirmed at the symposium that it was necessary to resolve the problems of smuggling, piracy, fishing and other issues currently challenging the legal order based on the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, and it was important for Japan to assert its positions and interests to the international community in a convincing way and to work actively toward the formation of an international legal order that contributes to these positions and interests. The discussion was extremely useful for the policy-makers in continuing to implement and build the legal order of the sea.