Security indentity, policymaking regime and Japanese security policy developement

Abstract

Compared to the Cold War, Japan’s post-Cold War security policy has undergone significant change. This is especially visible in the new means Japan has adopted, both outside and within the context of the U.S.-Japan security relationship, in contributing to regional and international affairs in military-strategic terms. Challenging realism’s dominance, this paper captures this shift through the use of collective identity, more specifically, Japanese security identity. It argues that Japan’s security policy expansion is captured by the shift in Japan’s security identity from a peace-state to an international-state. To understand this shift, the security identity is studied in the context of the Japanese security policymaking regime. Three elements of the regime are studied: the agents involved in the security policymaking process, the decision-making structure, and the role of the U.S. in Japan’s security policymaking process. The combined effect of these elements determines the dominant security identity and Japanese security policy.