EU/Japanese Relations

EU/Japanese Relations

When international relations between the world’s economic superpowers are mentioned, the first political/economic bonds that come to ones head are usually the US and Japan and now more often the US and the EU relationships. The world influence that comes from these two bonds is substantial, but there is a third relationship that I believe forms a triangle of political/economic power that stabilizes world politics. Ties between Japan and Europe have been considered relatively weak compared to those between Japan and the US or the US and Europe, but the policy initiatives arising from a joint declaration are helping to improve the balance of relations between these three partners.

Throughout the eighties the emphasis in EU/Japan relations was primarily on economic relations, but a new level of cooperation was inaugurated in 1991 by the Japan/EC Joint Declaration, which reconfirmed their commitment to freedom and democracy, free trade, human rights and other common values. This declaration charted a course for joint contributions to the solution of global issues and strengthening of the Europe-Japan partnership. Since the joint declaration, the EU and Japan have honored its spirit by holding annual summits as well as engaging in dialogue and cooperation in a wide variety of fields, on a broad range of levels. In the field of economic relations, in particular in 1992 when the trade imbalance hit record high levels and became a major subject of concern, great efforts on both sides have helped to steadily reduce it. There has also been more of an effort to promote dialogue in political fields since the Maastricht Treaty took effect in 1993 and the political unity of the EU itself was strengthened. In add...

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... coordinating a wide range of environmental policies. The agenda for the sixth consultations, which were held in May 1997, included exchanges of information on environmental policy developments and air quality issues on both sides, and discussions of how to provide leadership to the international community on such issues as climate change. Particularly the EU and Japan focused, with much success, on climate change during the third conference of the parties to the U.N. convention on climate change (COP3) held in December 1997 in Kyoto, Japan (Action Plan).

It is due to the cooperative efforts of the EU and Japan that helps freedom and democracy, free trade, human rights, and other important issues stay at the forefront of modern international relations. It is their relationship with the United States and each other that keeps stability in the post Cold War world.