The Mighty U.S.-Japan Alliance Takes on the World

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The rebalance to Asia is the signature feature of the Obama administration’s foreign policy, with the Japanese alliance at its center.  For this reason alone the public release of the revised Guidelines for Japan-US Defense Cooperation are of importance.

They also spell out a broader functional purpose and larger conceptual frame of reference for the bilateral relationship, which adds to their significance. But what signals do the Guidelines send about the strategic relationship and its purpose?

The alliance is now global in scope.

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