[Epoch Times, July 11, 2022]U.S. Secretary of State Blinken went to Japan today (11) to pay tribute to former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, applauding Abe for “proposing a visionary ‘free and open Indo-Pacific’ region.” Earlier, former White House deputy national security adviser Bo Ming disclosed that Abe’s invention of the term “Indo-Pacific” has far-reaching influence and is fully accepted by most of the countries in the region and other regions.
Abe proposes “shared vision for a free and open Indo-Pacific”
Antony Blinken visited Tokyo, Japan today (11th) to express condolences to the Japanese government and people on behalf of President Biden on the passing of Shinzo Abe.
Abe was assassinated at an election campaign on Friday at the age of 67.
“Former Prime Minister Abe was a staunch defender of the U.S.-Japan alliance, proposing a visionary ‘free and open Indo-Pacific’ region, and he aimed to strengthen ties with the U.S. and other like-minded countries,” Blinken said in Japan today, NHK reported. Relationships do a lot of work.”
“He (Abe) has worked with the president of the United States of both parties to deepen the alliance between our two countries and deliver a shared vision for a free and open Indo-Pacific,” the White House said in a statement on Friday.
Blinken used the term “Indo-Pacific” in a speech on China policy in May. “The United States shares the same vision as the nations and peoples of the region: a free and open Indo-Pacific with rules that are transparently made and applied fairly; nations free to make their own sovereign decisions.”
Abe’s invention of “Indo-Pacific” has far-reaching influence
In the past, Asia and the Pacific Rim were called the Asia-Pacific region. When was it called the “Indo-Pacific” region?
Former White House Deputy National Security Adviser Bo Ming yesterday (10th) when he wrote an article in the “Wall Street Journal” to mourn former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and disclosed that the term “Indo-Pacific” that everyone uses today was invented by Abe and has far-reaching influence.
Poming wrote in an article titled “Shinzo Abe Invented the ‘Indo-Pacific'” that Trump (Trump) delivered a speech declaring “freedom” during his visit to Vietnam in November 2017. and an open Indo-Pacific”. It marks the beginning of a shift in the terms leaders use to describe the world‘s most populous region.
It was Trump’s first trip to Asia since he took office, to attend the APEC meeting in Da Nang, Vietnam. Pomin said that when Trump said in Vietnam that the “free and open Indo-Pacific region” is “a beautiful constellation of countries, each country is its own dazzling star, not someone else’s satellite”, he received a standing ovation from the audience. .
But Trump is actually borrowing Abe’s phrase “a free and open Indo-Pacific.”
Bomin noted that in 2017, when the Trump administration was looking for a slogan to outline its strategy for the region, he and his colleagues saw the benefit of amplifying Abe’s narrative of a “free and open Indo-Pacific.” Other countries have also seized on this spirit.
In November 2017 then-Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull announced a policy to achieve a “secure, open and prosperous Indo-Pacific”.
Today, this phrase is fully accepted by most countries in the region and beyond.
Why did Abe invent the Indo-Pacific and be widely accepted?
Abe understood the Chinese Communist Party’s ambitions long before most Western leaders, Bo Ming said. This is what forced him to reimagine how countries should view Asia.
In 2007, during Abe’s first visit to India as prime minister, he called for a “broader Asia” spanning not only the Pacific but also the Indian Ocean, a “free and prosperous sea, open and transparent to all” in his speech.
Bomin said Abe knew that the term “Asia-Pacific” conjured up the geography of East Asia centered on China. He wants people to zoom out and see a bigger picture, including the young maritime nations of India and Southeast Asia.
As a result, Abe began to use the term “Indo-Pacific”.
In addition, Bo Ming said, Abe is also trying to offset Beijing’s authoritarian, centralized model with a more attractive concept. In his 2016 speech, he described a region that “values freedom, the rule of law and a market economy, free from force or coercion…”.
Abe constantly travels around his newly defined region, forging a close friendship with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced on Friday a one-day “national day of mourning” to “pay his respects” when he learned of Abe’s assassination.
Countries are starting to see Abe’s vision as a clean alternative to China’s opaque Belt and Road lending program.
Abe continues to promote “Quartet Security Dialogue” under the threat of CCP
Po Ming said the CCP is well aware of the power of specialized words to shape people’s thinking, and instructed its diplomats to warn its neighbors to never say “Indo-Pacific.” The threat failed, however, and the word began to spread widely.
Southeast Asian countries, led by Indonesia, announced a new Indo-Pacific outlook. As far away as Brussels and Berlin, countries have drawn up Indo-Pacific strategies.
To support the regional architecture, Abe is also promoting a new diplomatic initiative, the Quad, Pomin said. Abe imagined Japan, India, Australia and the United States as a giant baseball stadium to contain Beijing’s transformation. After years of effort, the Quad high-level meeting finally took place in 2017, and it was elevated to a cabinet-level meeting by the end of Trump’s term.
Quad has held four formal leadership summits since the incumbent US President Joe Biden took office. Although not a military alliance, the Quad has become an important forum for dealing with Beijing’s disinformation, supply chain extortion, debt-trap diplomacy, illegal fishing and other misconduct.
Responsible editor: Sun Yun#