Japan to propose strategic dialogue with India-US-Australia to counter China
What's the story
Japan will be proposing the creation of a strategic dialogue between it and the US, India, and Australia, according to Japanese foreign minister Taro Kono. The dialogue would be aimed at countering China's expansive "Belt and Road" policy. Japanese PM Shinzo Abe will likely propose the dialogue idea to US President Donald Trump when the two hold a summit meeting on November 6.
Dialogue
Japan says 4-nation dialogue can promote defense/trade in Asia/Africa
Kono said Japan is likely to propose that the four nations promote free trade, defense cooperation, and infrastructure investment across Asia and Africa. "We are in an era when Japan has to exert itself diplomatically by drawing a big strategic picture," he said. "To maintain free and open-ocean, the economy and security will surely be on the table," he added.
China's aims
What the Chinese Belt and Road initiative includes
The Belt and Road initiative is a project to boost China's international standing by financing and building a transport and trade network comprising of over 60 countries. On October 24, the project was included in the Chinese Communist Party's constitution during the enshrinement of President Xi Jinping's ideology. This has given the project a bigger priority and added pressure to succeed.