Japan and the Visegrad 4: the unsensational strategic partners
Japan and the Visegrad 4: the unsensational strategic partners

Author(s): Rudolf Fürst
Subject(s): Business Economy / Management, Economic policy, Government/Political systems, International relations/trade, Political behavior, EU-Accession / EU-DEvelopment, Geopolitics
Published by: Ústav mezinárodních vztahů
Keywords: Japan; Visegrad 4; Geo-economic challenges; Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA); Asian business partners; EU;
Summary/Abstract: The paper points to the convergence between the Visegrad 4 (V4) and Japan that is driven by economic concerns and shared views on global political challenges. The Japanese pro-active European strategy arises from the high relevance of the EU in Japanese economic global policy, and also as a reaction to the increasing Chinese global influence, and the rising US protectionism. The Japanese European policy also reached Central Europe as Japan established a regional cooperation platform with the V4 states. This paper discusses the potential, as well as the real prospects of Japan’s rising interest in the V4 group. Japan is the leading Asian investor in Czechia and Poland. The V4 states ought to benefit from the multi-level structure of the developing ties with Japan. Promoting cooperation with Japan ought to be a theme for the Czech V4 presidency. The V4+Japan format is asymmetrical and there is no clear vision for its institutionalizing, but individual benefits from it for individual V4 states on the bilateral level are available, and the V4 states should take advantage of them. The EU-Japan level stimulating economic effect of the Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) is obvious, and Europe could gain more from stronger ties with Japan. Such a rapprochement, however, does not divert Japan and the EU from their understanding of China and the building of their ties with this stronger Asian stakeholder.

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