In the past six months, the war between Russia and Ukraine has covered up many things that seem inconspicuous but actually have a great impact on the world pattern. The most typical example is that Japan and South Korea are moving towards reconciliation and strengthening various connections with , NATO .
On September 28, local time, three German fighter jets flew to Japan and carried out joint military exercises with the Japanese Air Self-Defense Force. This is the first time that Japan and Germany, as defeated countries, held similar military exercises after World War II .
As a defeated country in World War II, the policies adopted by Japan and Germany were completely different after the war. Generally speaking, Germany adopted a lowered attitude and sought forgiveness from neighboring countries as much as possible. Therefore, it quickly integrated into the political system of EU . Except for the fact that it has no permanent membership in UN , it was basically not restricted by other aspects.
However, with the support of the United States, Japan adopted a stubborn attitude. The extreme right forces evolved from militarism have changed their appearance in Japanese politics and have been entrenched to this day. Now it has completely exposed its ambition to "denied history and continue to expand."
, the two countries should be parallel lines. The difference in national policies prompted them to be both capitalist camp , except for economic exchanges, their political and military interactions are very weak.
However, now, the joint military exercise between German Air Force fighter jets and Japanese Self-Defense Force has obviously broken this "taboo". It means that Germany no longer acts as a "honest person" and has begun to openly oppose the world order established after World War II with Japan and other countries.
Use "the reactionaries around the world have begun to unite" to talk about the relationship between Japan and Germany, which may be a bit too much, but the meaning conveyed is similar. Due to the disintegration of the Soviet Union, the Yalta system established after World War II was the first to collapse in Europe.
However, due to China's rise and rejuvenation and the existence of the United States, the international system established after World War II was relatively stable in Northeast Asia and Indo-Pacific directions. This stability is based on the balance between the two major powers of China and the United States.
Now, due to the decline of the United States, it is desperate to curb China and actively destroy the Asia-Pacific pattern, citing the intervention of European powers in NATO, in an attempt to deal with China; while European powers are envious of the active market in East Asia and want to take advantage of this to get a share of the pie. So in the name of maintaining the "rules-based international order", they are more involved in East Asian affairs.
Germany sent fighter to Japan for joint military exercise, which is an example. The same example also includes strengthening ties between South Korea and NATO and appointing ambassadors to each other.
seems to be just a normal thing. After all, we don’t care who South Korea wants to make friends with. But NATO is not a national organization, but a clear military alliance. South Korea's ambassador to NATO has a clear purpose, which is to "induce wolves into the house" and destroy the peace situation on the peninsula.
To put it better, this is the same as the German military aircraft going to Japan, and the United States has declined, so it has led European allies to fight against China. To put it bluntly, this is the Western group led by the United States that wants to unite to form an absolute advantage over China and break the relatively stable political pattern in East Asia.
Of course, in addition to the will of the United States, Japan is also very proactive in the evolution of the political landscape in Northeast Asia. To some extent, the introduction of NATO and peace with South Korea is that Japan wants to completely change the situation in Asia and turn East Asia into the same as Europe, and get rid of the conspiracy of the international system after World War II.
during that time, the United States proposed a plan to return to the Indo-Pacific by former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe strongly supported and encouraged. This is certainly not good news for China and other Asian countries. The ending of the international order established after World War II was broken, just like Europe today, was trapped in a new vortex of war between great powers.
It’s just that China is not Russia, and East Asia cannot and will not become a new “Ukraine”. They want to hold the “thigh” of the United States, but we don’t care, but if we want to use the power of the United States and NATO to undermine peace and stability in the East Asian region, it will inevitably be opposed by all countries in the region. This can be seen from the recent attitudes of Southeast Asian countries.
And unlike Europe, China in East Asia has absolute strength advantages. Whether it is Japan and South Korea supported by the United States or Southeast Asia that are gradually developing economically, it is not the same opponent as China. Even if Japan and the United States bring NATO over, it will actually have a symbolic meaning and it is impossible to rewrite the Asian pattern.
But whether they can do it is one thing, and we are more cautious about it is another. The world is already in chaos. At this time, the stability of the Asian economic circle is the last anchor of the world's stability. We must unite most Asian countries and cut off their thoughts before the Western group really makes a mistake, otherwise there will be endless troubles.
