Japan was slow to realise the strategic importance of Central Asia. After the collapse of the Soviet Union, it took Tokyo three years to open embassies in the region. Several more years passed before PM Ryutaro Hashimoto inaugurated a new “Silk Road” diplomacy.

Today, however, Japan has engaged all five countries of Central Asia both bilaterally and multilaterally. Former Japanese ambassador to Uzbekistan Akio Kawato, speaking at a seminar sponsored by the Sasakawa Peace Foundation, late April, argued that Tokyo now occupies a critical balancing role in the region. To demonstrate that they are not too dependent on either Washington or Moscow, the countries of Central Asia have turned to Tokyo.

Japan’s focus on the region received an upgrade in 2004 when Japanese Foreign Minister Yoriko Kawaguchi visited Central Asia and declared that Japan was committed to helping the region become “much greater than the sum of its members.” The then Japanese PM Junichiro Koizumi followed up in 2006 with visits to Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan.

“Koizumi’s visit was greeted with a certain degree of scepticism in some quarters outside of Central Asia,” remarked C Frederick Starr, chairman of the Central Asia-Caucasus Institute, the event’s co-sponsor. “But there has been no country that has been more generous in providing humanitarian assistance to Central Asia. Recently, Japan has organised a consultative gro-up involving all the countries of the region called Japan plus Central Asia.”

Japan’s economic assistance to the region falls into two categories: roughly $2 billion in long-term loans and $600 million in grants. With this assistance, Kawato explained, Japan has helped build 60 vocational schools in Uzbekistan, modernised railways and airports, and constructed roads and optical fibre lines.

The funds from Japan to Central Asia do not always flow smoothly however. “When I was ambassador in Uzbekistan,” Kawato recalled, “I worked hard to realise a project to construct a railway. But it took two years before we could sign the agreement. “He attributed these delays to criticisms of Japan’s Official Development Assistance (ODA) for wasting money.

A major potential for increased commercial ties is in Kazakh uranium. However, Kawato noted, the uranium needs to be processed and enriched before being imported to Japan. “Usually this processing is done in Russia,” he continued. “That is why we are going to conclude a cooperation agreement with Russia by the end of the year.”

Japan’s relations with Central Asia is characterised by “open coordination,” which he contrasted with the “rather closed” Shanghai Cooperation Organisation. Japan also respects the diversity of the region. It supports human rights and democratisation.

Looking toward the future Kawato recommended greater cooperation among the five Central Asian countries. “Each country is too small to be regarded as a sizable market. A loose consolidation is the only way to promote and preserve independence and economic prosperity.” Kawato looked to the Conference on Security and Cooperation in Europe as a model that could confirm territorial borders, reinforce the status quo, and assure the countries of the region that the big powers were no longer interested in playing a “great game” in the region. — IPS