Japan to woo ASEAN without U.S. on open Indo-Pacific order

In Biden's absence, Kishida to focus on common ground with Southeast Asia

Japanese Foreign Minister Yoshimasa Hayashi (center) poses for a family photo with his ASEAN counterparts at a meeting in Jakarta on July 13, 2023. © Reuters

HIROYUKI AKIYAMA, Nikkei staff writer

August 31, 2023 03:57 JST

TOKYO -- Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida will enlist leaders from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations as partners in shaping a rules-based order in the Indo-Pacific at a summit next week in Indonesia, using an approach designed to avoid direct criticism of China, Nikkei has learned.

The meeting is in preparation for a Tokyo summit in December that will commemorate 50 years of Japan-ASEAN ties, which is expected to result in a joint statement that will include a vision of new cooperation between the sides.