Newsletter No. 1412
News-Analysis
July 13, 2009

 

The following Newsletter has been contributed by Alex Calvo (Shingetsu Member No. 127), who currently serves as Professor of International Relations and International Law, European University in Barcelona.

JAPAN SENDS CIVILIANS TO A PROVINCIAL RECONSTRUCTION TEAM IN AFGHANISTAN

The debate on policy towards Afghanistan proceeds in Japan, one of the latest developments being the decision by Tokyo to provide a small number of civilian staff to one of the provincial reconstruction teams (PRT) operating in the country. Although the “normalization” of Japan as a military power can be clearly observed in the last decades—and China’s continued push for regional hegemony is likely to contribute to the process—the deployment of military forces in Afghanistan is opposed by a majority of Japanese public opinion, and is seen by many in government circles as a step too far—at least in the immediate future. [1]

As described in other Shingetsu Newsletters, this does not mean that Japan has no Afghan policy, but rather Tokyo has tended to limit itself to providing economic and technical aid, political support for the Karzai administration, and improving infrastructure in Central Asian countries, which can be used not only for expanding civilian trade but also to increase the transportation capacity of the so-called “Northern Corridor,” delivering non-military supplies to allied forces in Afghanistan. [2]

The provision of civilian staff to a PRT might therefore be a small but in some ways significant step towards a greater Japanese role in Afghanistan.

The PRT chosen by Tokyo is that operating in the district of Chaghcharan, capital of Ghor province in Central Afghanistan, led by Lithuania, where four Japanese civil servants have been seconded. Some personnel from the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) are also present in the area, providing technical assistance. Vilnius asked Tokyo to contribute some workers to the PRT last fall, and the new strategy announced by the Obama administration includes a reinforcement of civilian capacities. The decision can thus be seen in part as aimed at supporting Washington, since the Self-Defense Forces are unlikely to be deployed in the foreseeable future. [3]

This is not the only way in which Japan is aiding PRTs, since eleven of them (set up by seven countries) have received funds from Tokyo. The Japanese government has a liaison and coordination worker at NATO’s civilian representative division in Kabul. [4]

The Japanese seconded to the Chaghcharan PRT reached the city on 23 May, and two days later this was one of the issues discussed at a half-an-hour meeting between Japanese foreign minister Hirofumi Nakasone and his Lithuanian counterpart Vygaudas Usackas on the occasion of an ASEM (Asia-Europe Meeting) foreign ministers’ meeting in Hanoi. Nakasone mentioned Japan’s willingness to contribute to Lithuanian efforts to respond to local needs in areas such as “education, medicine, and other fields.” [5]

The Japanese contribution to the Chaghcharan PRT was publicly acknowledged by NATO Secretary General Jaap de Hoop Scheffer during his visit to the city on 18 June, when he “highlighted positive effect of Japan’s joining the Lithuanian-led PRT” and said that, “recently I have been talking about Afghanistan in Japan, and now I find Japanese representatives when visiting Chaghcharan.” However, the visit also highlighted a common complaint in areas considered relatively secure, namely the perceived concentration of efforts in the east and south of Afghanistan, where the bulk of military operations against the insurgency take place.

The PRT commander, Colonel Alvydas Siuparis, pointed out that “provinces like Ghowr [are] in need of greater support from international community than what it [receives at the] moment: being relatively more peaceful than surrounding regions, Ghowr does not always attract all the attention necessary for development of vital sectors.” He added, “More attention, especially of the Central Government of Afghanistan, would be more than welcome.” [6]

Japan is considered by NATO to be one of its “Contact Countries” or “other partners around the globe,” sharing with the organization “similar strategic concerns and key Alliance values.” [7] During his visit to Chaghcharan, Scheffer met the Japanese personnel deployed in the PRT and “thanked Japan for its considerable support to the reconstruction of Afghanistan through the NATO-Japan Grant Assistance for Grassroots Projects (GAGP) scheme.” [8] In addition to the Lithuanians and Japanese, the PRT is also staffed with members from Denmark, Croatia, Ukraine, Georgia, and the United States. [9]

NOTES

[1] Christopher W. Hugues, “Japan’s Remilitarisation,” Adelphi Papers, No. 403, April 2009; and James Manicom, “China’s Claims to an Extended Continental Shelf in the East China Sea: Meaning and Implications,” China Brief, Vol. 9, Issue 14, July 9, 2009.

[2] Alex Calvo, “A Comprehensive Japanese Strategy for Afghanistan and Central Asia,” Shingetsu Newsletter No. 1306, March 4, 2009.

[3] “Japan to Dispatch 4 Civilians to Provincial Reconstruction Team in Afghanistan,” Mainichi Shinbun, May 25, 2009.

[4] Ibid.

[5] Ministry of Foreign Affairs, “Japan-Lithuania Foreign Ministerial Meeting,” MOFA website, May 25, 2009.

[6] Ministry of National Defense of the Republic of Lithuania (MNDRL), “NATO Secretary General Jaap de Hoop Scheffer Visited Lithuanian PRT-9 in Afghanistan,” MNDRL website, June 19, 2009.

[7] NATO “Summit Guide 2009,” NATO website, undated.

[8] NATO, “NATO Secretary General Visits Different Regions in Afghanistan,” NATO website, June 19, 2009.

[9] Ministry of National Defense of the Republic of Lithuania (MNDRL), “PRT-9 Conducted Five-Day Patrol in the South of Ghowr,” MNDRL website, July 2, 2009.