Takaichi Insists on Rule of Law in UNGA

Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi gave a speech at annual General Debate of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) on September 22nd. Takaichi insisted that Japan would contribute to maintain international order based on rule of law. However, she intensively ignored unilateral sanction on the International Criminal Court (ICC) or toppling the leadership with military operation in Venezuela and Iran by the United States. Rule of law is not applied to the U.S., led by Donald Trump, in the world according to Takaichi. 

In her speech to the UNGA, Takaichi introduced that Japan maintained a basic concept of Japan’s diplomacy called Free and Open Indo-Pacific (FOIP), which was proposed by former prime minister (and Takaichi’s political mentor) Shinzo Abe in 2016. The FOIP was presented as a framework for freedom, rule of law and market economy in Africa, based on a success in Asian region.

 

Strange enough, there is no reference to China in the concept of FOIP. China had launched its own development plan called One Belt, One Road in 2013. But it was a great concern that China reached African countries with debt-trap diplomacy and made military advance to the South China Sea, which was found unlawful by the Permanent Court of Arbitration. The FOIP of Japan sounded as a countermeasure to China’s advance to the Global South.

 

Ten years ago, the concern was about China. Now it is about Trump’s U.S. Trump called the ICC, that issued arrest warrant to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, “the out of control institution” and demanded all nations to resign from the court. The U.S. reportedly considers further sanction on the ICC to exclude it from transaction of U.S. dollar.

 

In her UNGA speech, Takaichi did not referred to U.S. sanction on the court topped by the president from Japan, Tomoko Akane. “Since the end of the Second World War, Japan, as a peace-loving nation, has attached great importance to the rule of law in the settlement of any disputes. This is demonstrated by Japan’s consistent support for, and its contributions of judges to various international judicial organs, such as the International Court of Justice (ICJ), the International Criminal Court and the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea (ITLOS),” said Takaichi. But she did not express any support for one of those three judicial institutions, which is facing U.S. financial sanction.

 

Instead, she stressed Japan’s contributions to energy security, securing supply chain of crucial minerals, world without nuclear weapons or North Korea’s implementation of resolutions of U.N. Security Council to dismantle nuclear and missile program. She even required the U.N. to drop enemy states clause in the U.N. Charter. All those arguments are not necessarily contributing to maintaining rule of law, but to Japan’s national interest. It is undeniable that Takaichi simply seeks a prosperous Japan.

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