Free and Open Indo-Pacific

Free and Open Indo-Pacific (FOIP; Japanese: 自由で開かれたインド太平洋戦略, romanized: jiyū de hirakareta Indotaiheiyō senryaku) is an umbrella term that encompasses Indo-Pacific-specific strategies of countries with similar interests in the region.[1] The concept, with its origins in Weimar German geopolitics, has been revived since 2006 through Japanese initiatives and American cooperation since 2006.[2][3]

Indo-Pacific. The green circle covers ASEAN.

Japan introduced the FOIP concept and formally put it down as a strategy in 2016.[1] In 2019 the United States Department of State published a document formalizing its concept of a free and open Indo-Pacific.[4] Since then, multiple countries from the European Union to Southeast Asia, have referred to the Indo-Pacific in national security or foreign policy documents.

Origin

Historians and political scientists have shown that the "Indo-Pacific" emerged in the contexts of Weimar German geopolitics in the 1920s-1930s, and has since spread to Japan through Karl Haushofer's intervention.[5][6][7]

During 2006–07 when Taro Aso was Foreign Minister, Japan presented the idea of "Freedom and Prosperity".[8]

In August 2007, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's speech in the Parliament of India included the scope of thinking as followings:[9]

"We are now at a point at which the Confluence of the Two Seas is coming into being. The Pacific and the Indian Oceans are now bringing about a dynamic coupling as seas of freedom and of prosperity."

It was the base model of FOIP according to Keiichi Ichikawa, the diplomat who had been in charged of Policy Coordination Division,[10] and Katsuyuki Yakushiji, one of the consulted experts.[3]

According to the Japanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA), Abe first officially explained Japan's commitment to the FOIP strategy in Kenya on 27 August 2016.[3][11]

However, even before this, the concept of FOIP also falls in place with Abe's thinking of "diplomacy that takes a panoramic perspective of the world map". In 2012, Prime Minister Abe's first elucidation of FOIP went as follows:[3][12]

"Peace, stability, and freedom of navigation in the Pacific Ocean are inseparable from peace, stability, and freedom of navigation in the Indian Ocean. Japan, as one of the oldest sea-faring democracies in Asia, should play a greater role—alongside Australia, India, and the US—in preserving the common good in both regions"

Indo-Pacific-specific strategies

Japan's diplomatic implementation

In January 2013, Japanese government had prepared a PM Abe's speech on "Five New Principles" to be delivered in Jakarta. However, as PM Abe had to go back to Japan before the scheduled date to respond to In Amenas hostage crisis, the speech was not realized, instead its script was made available.[13]

In 2015, to implement the framework, Japan upgraded "The Guidelines for Japan-U.S. Defense Cooperation" with US,[14] agreed and shared "Japan and India Vision 2025 Special Strategic and Global Partnership" with India,[15] agreed and shared "Next steps of the Special Strategic Partnership: Asia, Pacific and Beyond" with Australia,[16] and the quadrilateral framework was prepared.

On 20 March 2023, PM Fumio Kishida, who is visiting New Delhi, India, delivered a policy speech entitled "the Future of the Indo-Pacific—Japan's New Plan for a `Free and Open Indo-Pacific'– `Together with India, as an Indispensable Partner'" at the Indian Council of World Affairs (ICWA), announcing Japan’s new plan for a "Free and Open Indo-Pacific (FOIP)". S. Jaishankar, External Affairs Minister of India, attended this speech, representing the Indian government.[17]

As of April 2023, Japan is boosting Pacific Island Country resilience through increased collaboration under this vision.[18][19]

India's foreign policy

The Indian government stands for a free, open and rules-based Indo-Pacific as it is important for economic development of the region and the wider global community.[20] A central feature of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s foreign policy has been to advance the need to create a “free, open, and inclusive” Indo-Pacific.[21]

The U.S. National Security Strategy

In the 2017 US National Security Strategy, Asia-Pacific was exchanged with Indo-Pacific.[3] On 30 May 2018, The United States Pacific Command (USPACOM) is also renamed the United States Indo-Pacific Command (USINDOPACOM).[22]

In December 2021, Secretary of State Antony Blinken delivered a speech on the United States' approach to the Indo-Pacific in Jakarta.[23][24]

In February 2022, Biden-⁠Harris Administration published "Indo-Pacific Strategy of the United States" which describes "free and open" as top priority.[25] In the 2022 Biden-⁠Harris Administration's National Security Strategy, "Promote a Free and Open Indo-Pacific" is described at the top of its part four; our strategy by region.[26]

Australia's foreign policy

In 2017 Foreign Policy White Paper, stable and prosperous Indo–Pacific is described as the most important Australia's interest, and Indo–Pacific democracies are described as of first order importance to Australia.[27]

ASEAN

In June 2019, the ASEAN released an Indo-Pacific related document which reiterates and furthers pre-existing mechanisms.[28]

NATO

As of July 2022, NATO does not have a policy for the Indo Pacific, yet its political and diplomatic interests in the region are broad. Apart from the U.S., more recently other NATO countries have reoriented their maritime policy in defense of a Free and Open Indo-Pacific (FOIP).[29]

Europe

In September 2021, the European Union published Joint Communication on the EU's Indo-Pacific Strategy.[30]

France

France's territories and EEZ, excluding Antarctic territories. A large proportion of France's overseas territories are located in the Indo-Pacific region.

France is an Indo-Pacific power because of the several territories of France located there. released a strategy in 2019 which was subsequently updated in 2021.[31]

Germany
Germany adopted policy guidelines for the region in September 2020.[32]

Netherlands
In November 2020, Netherlands published "Indo-Pacific: Guidelines for strengthening Dutch and EU cooperation with partners in Asia". [33]

Canada's Indo-Pacific Strategy

In November 2022, Canada launched Indo-Pacific Strategy to support long-term growth, prosperity, and security for Canadians.[34][35]

South Korea's diplomatic strategy

South Korea's approach to the Indo-Pacific is based on cooperation and complementarity between its New Southern Policy and the U.S.'s and the Quad's Indo-Pacific policy, but without openly antagonizing China.[36] In this respect, South Korea is balancing the desire for foreign policy autonomy with the need for strategic alliances, above all with the United States.[37]

In December 2022, South Korea published "Strategy for a Free, Peaceful, and Prosperous Indo-Pacific Region".[38]

Criticism

Political scientist Sharifah Munirah Alatas has argued that the origin of the term "Indo-Pacific" was Euro-centric, so it lacked the input of Asian countries in a broader anticolonial context.[39] The Australian Citizens Party has publicly denounced the "Nazi roots" of the "Indo-Pacific" concept.[40]

See also

References
  1. Hosoya, Nicholas Szechenyi, Yuichi; Hosoya, Nicholas Szechenyi, Yuichi (10 October 2020). "Working Toward a Free and Open Indo-Pacific". Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. Archived from the original on 2020-10-29. Retrieved 2020-11-04.
  2. Li, Hansong (September 2022). "The "Indo-Pacific": Intellectual Origins and International Visions in Global Contexts". Modern Intellectual History. 19 (3): 807–833. doi:10.1017/S1479244321000214.
  3. Watanabe, Tsuneo "Nabe" (30 October 2019). "Japan's Rationale for the Free and Open Indo-Pacific Strategy [1]". International Information Network Analysis | The Sasakawa Peace Foundation. Archived from the original on 2020-10-27. Retrieved 2020-11-04.
  4. "A Free and Open Indo-Pacific: Advancing a Shared Vision" (PDF). www.state.gov. U.S. State Department. 4 November 2019. Archived (PDF) from the original on 28 October 2020.
  5. Li, Hansong (September 2022). "The "Indo-Pacific": Intellectual Origins and International Visions in Global Contexts". Modern Intellectual History. 19 (3): 807–833. doi:10.1017/S1479244321000214. ISSN 1479-2443. Retrieved 20 February 2023.
  6. Kassab, Hanna Samir (28 January 2023). "What Is the Indo-Pacific? Genealogy, Securitization, and the Multipolar System". Chinese Political Science Review. doi:10.1007/s41111-023-00233-z. ISSN 2365-4252. Retrieved 31 January 2023.
  7. Alatas, Sharifah Munirah (3 April 2022). "Appropriating the Indo-Pacific Construct: An Analysis of Eurocentrism from a Southeast Asian Perspective". Politikon. 49 (2): 120–135. doi:10.1080/02589346.2022.2065424. ISSN 0258-9346. Retrieved 31 January 2023.
  8. "Speech by Mr. Taro Aso, Minister for Foreign Affairs on the Occasion of the Japan Institute of International Affairs Seminar "Arc of Freedom and Prosperity: Japan's Expanding Diplomatic Horizons"". MOFA, Japan. 30 November 2006. Retrieved 11 December 2021.
  9. "Speech by H.E. Mr. Shinzo Abe, Prime Minister of Japan, at the Parliament of the Republic of India "Confluence of the Two Seas"". MOFA, Japan. 22 August 2007. Retrieved 24 September 2021.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  10. "自由で開かれたインド太平洋 誕生秘話" [The behind-the-scenes story of the birth of "Free and Open Indo-Pacific"]. NHK (in Japanese). 30 June 2021. Retrieved 29 July 2022.
  11. "Address by Prime Minister Shinzo Abe at the Opening Session of TICAD VI". MOFA, Japan. 27 August 2016. Archived from the original on 2020-11-07. Retrieved 4 December 2020.
  12. Abe, Shinzo (27 December 2012). "Asia's Democratic Security Diamond | by Shinzo Abe". Project Syndicate. Archived from the original on 2021-01-18. Retrieved 4 November 2020.
  13. Shinzo Abe (18 January 2013). "The Bounty of the Open Seas: Five New Principles for Japanese Diplomacy". MOFA, Japan. Retrieved 15 February 2021.
  14. "The Guidelines for Japan-U.S. Defense Cooperation" (PDF). MOFA, Japan. 27 April 2015. Retrieved 16 February 2021.
  15. "Japan and India Vision 2025 Special Strategic and Global Partnership". MOFA, Japan. 12 December 2015. Retrieved 16 February 2021.
  16. "Next steps of the Special Strategic Partnership: Asia, Pacific and Beyond". MOFA, Japan. 18 December 2015. Retrieved 16 February 2021.
  17. Fumio Kishida (20 March 2023). "Policy Speech by Prime Minister KISHIDA Fumio (New Plan for a "Free and Open Indo-Pacific")". MOFA, Japan. Retrieved 21 March 2023.
  18. Marc Jacob Prosser (2 April 2023). "Japan boosting Pacific Island Country resilience through increased collaboration". Indo-Pacific Defense Forum. Retrieved 6 April 2023.
  19. "Courtesy Call on Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs BROWN of the Cook Islands by Foreign Minister Hayashi". MOFA, Japan. 21 March 2023. Retrieved 6 April 2023.
  20. "India stands for free and open Indo-Pacific: Defence Minister". mint.
  21. "A Free and Open Indo-Pacific Needs a Free and Open India". The DIPLOMAT.
  22. Li, Hansong (September 2022). "The "Indo-Pacific": Intellectual Origins and International Visions in Global Contexts". Modern Intellectual History. 19 (3): 807–833. doi:10.1017/S1479244321000214.
  23. "A Free and Open Indo-Pacific". United States Department of State. December 14, 2021. Retrieved August 4, 2022.
  24. Brad Lendon; Andrew Raine (July 21, 2022). "'A free and open Indo-Pacific': With a single phrase, Shinzo Abe changed America's view of Asia and China". CNN. Retrieved August 5, 2022.
  25. "Indo-Pacific Strategy of the United States". White House. February 11, 2022. Retrieved December 17, 2022.
  26. "National Security Strategy" (PDF). White House. October 12, 2022. Retrieved October 12, 2022.
  27. "2017 Foreign Policy White Paper". DFAT. 2017. Retrieved October 12, 2022.
  28. Pulipaka, Sanjay; Musaddi, Mohit (21 September 2021). "In Defence of the 'Indo-Pacific' Concept". Observer Research Foundation (ORF). Retrieved 2021-09-24.
  29. "REGIONAL PERSPECTIVES REPORT ON THE INDO-PACIFIC" (PDF). NATO. July 2022. pp. 15–16. Retrieved October 18, 2022.
  30. "Questions and Answers: EU Strategy for Cooperation in the Indo-Pacific". European Union. September 16, 2021. Retrieved December 17, 2022.
  31. "The Indo-Pacific region: a priority for France". Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs, France. November 2021. Retrieved 3 August 2020.
  32. Amt, Auswärtiges. ""Germany – Europe – Asia: shaping the 21st century together": The German Government adopts policy guidelines on the Indo-Pacific region". German Federal Foreign Office. Retrieved September 24, 2021.
  33. "Indo-Pacific: Guidelines for strengthening Dutch and EU cooperation with partners in Asia". Government of the Netherlands. November 2020. Retrieved December 19, 2022.
  34. "Canada launches Indo-Pacific Strategy to support long-term growth, prosperity, and security for Canadians". Government of Canada. 27 November 2022. Retrieved 28 November 2022.
  35. "Canada's Indo-Pacific Strategy" (PDF). Global Affairs Canada. 27 November 2022. Retrieved 28 November 2022.
  36. Pacheco Pardo, Ramon (May 21, 2021). "South Korea Rebuffed Trump. Here's Why It Might Cooperate with Biden". The Washington Post. Retrieved December 17, 2022.
  37. Snyder, Scott A. (2020). South Korea at the Crossroads: Autonomy and Alliance in an Era of Rival Powers. Columbia University Press. ISBN 9780231185493.
  38. "Strategy for a Free, Peaceful, and Prosperous Indo-Pacific Region". Ministry of Foreign Affairs (South Korea). December 28, 2022. Retrieved December 29, 2022.
  39. Alatas, Sharifah Munirah (3 April 2022). "Appropriating the Indo-Pacific Construct: An Analysis of Eurocentrism from a Southeast Asian Perspective". Politikon. 49 (2): 120–135. doi:10.1080/02589346.2022.2065424. ISSN 0258-9346. Retrieved 31 January 2023.
  40. "The Nazi roots of the 'Indo-Pacific strategy'". Australian Citizens Party. Retrieved 31 January 2023.

Further reading
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