Japan’s Security Policy Expansion in Southeast Asia During the Shinzo Abe Administration: Case of Japan–Indonesia Security Cooperation

Abstract

This research explains how the changing geostrategic realm impacts the security policy of a state. From this context, this article aims to investigate Japan’s geostrategic interest in expanding its security and defence policy to Southeast Asia under the 2012–2020 Abe administration, with Indonesia as the case study. This research employed a disciplined configurative case study method with geostrategic theory as the analysis framework. This research found that Japan’s expanding security and defence cooperation with Indonesia is caused by the increasing geostrategic vulnerability in the Indo-Pacific area, mainly concerning China’s geostrategy under Xi Jinping called China Dream. Japan seeks to prevent China’s growing geostrategic influence in mainland Asia, which is on the northern side, from going southward to the Indo-Pacific area. To that end, expanded security and defence cooperation with Indonesia is important to maintain the stability of Southeast Asia as a connector of the Indian Ocean and the Pacific Ocean.