U.S., Japan tied by mutual need

"The U.S. relationship with Japan is the most important bilateral relationship we have."

I first heard those works in Tokyo in October 1979 in the office of U.S. Ambassador to Japan Mike Mansfield. The crusty Montanan, who served as ambassador from 1977-89, was already well known as the no-nonsense majority leader of the U.S. Senate.

His often repeated statement of the importance of the U.S.-Japan relationship was deeply felt. Used as a stock answer whenever a U.S. business leader or politician complained about the problems of dealing with Japan, it was his way of saying, "Hang in there. Make it work."

In 27 trips to Japan since that October, including several additional sessions with Mansfield, I heard that statement repeated many times. It was as sure to come as his lighted pipe.

Mansfield's view was all the more stunning taken in the context of the times. Many Americans, asked to name our most important bilateral relationship, might have said "Great Britain," with whom we have what has long been called a "special relationship."

Most would have said the "Soviet Union." These were the days of the Cold War and the Brezhnev Doctrine, long before glasnost and perestroika.

Despite the many complexities of world politics, Mansfield never passed an opportunity to remind an American or Japanese audience about a fundamental fact of international relations: Most of the world's military, financial, economic and therefore political assets are controlled by the U.S. and Japan. And, contrary to the popular view, more are controlled by the U.S. than Japan.

The collapse of communism in the Soviet Union and Eastern Europe underscores the fundamental truth spoken by America's envoy from Montana. As we pause to reflect on the 50th anniversary of the treachery of Pearl Harbor perpetrated by a military government that controlled Japan in 1941, we must not lose sight of what is fundamental and what is not.

Yes, there are serious barriers to some U.S. exports to Japan. But let's not forget that Japan buys more per capita from the U.S. than any other major trading partner outside of North America.

Yes, many fear the Japanese are "buying up America." But let's not forget that the market value of U.S. investments overseas exceeds those of foreigners in the U.S. Indeed, compared to the United Kingdom, Germany or other industrialized nations, the percentage of U.S. assets that are foreign-owned ranks very low.

While the U.S. and Japan compete worldwide, both are leaders in the 12-nation Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation process (called APEC), the world's most rapidly growing and most entrpreneurial trade group. And the Japanese have blocked recent initiatives by the Malaysian prime minister to establish a rival, Asia-only trade group, which would eliminate the U.S. and Canada, now players in APEC, and Mexico, a likely future participant.

So as Pearl Harbor draws our attention for a week or so to Japan and Asia (too bad for us that our president was stampeded into canceling his Asia trip), we must not allow differences of culture and historical experience to dim our vision of the future.

Both the U.S. and Japan have an enormous stake in getting along, in building new institutions for economic vitality and political cooperation, in providing leadership for political stability both regionally and globally. That's why we must not allow isolationism on the right or economic nationalism on the left to block the imperative to work together. Too much is at stake.