Ireland's Neutrality Policy and Japan's Alliance Policy

Abstract

This paper offers a comparative analysis of Ireland's neutrality policy and Japan's alliance policy. These policies have been adopted as the basic stance of diplomacy for each country for years. In both cases, these longstanding policies have an important bearing on today's circumstances. This paper considers two issues, first, why did Ireland and Japan each take a different direction for their basic stance of diplomacy, one for neutrality and the other for alliance with the United States, while the situations of Ireland in 1939 and those of Japan in 1951 had some commonalities? Second, why did the paths of each stance of diplomacy since their inception take different directions in Ireland and Japan? While Ireland's neutrality policy has undergone a considerable remodelling since the end of the Second World War, Japan has continued to strengthen its security alliance with the United States. In examining these two issues by way of comparative analysis, I use the same frame of reference, focusing on three dimensions, namely, security, national identity and relations with key countries. These three factors are valid in answering the above-mentioned research questions, illuminating both differences and commonalities between the two countries.