LONDON and Tokyo hope to enhance their presence and clout in the Asia-Pacific by strengthening their military cooperation. Nevertheless, their ambitions to dominate the region and change its status quo will be futile, despite U.S. support. British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and visiting Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida signed a reciprocal access agreement (RAA) on Wednesday that allows both countries to deploy forces on each other’s soil. The pact is considered “the most important defense treaty” between Britain and Japan since 1902 when they signed the Anglo-Japanese Alliance. Britain is also the first European country to have an RAA with Japan, media reported. Both nations have arguably the strongest ties with the U.S. among all of Washington’s allies, and see China as a major challenge. Both countries have huge ambitions in the Asia-Pacific. Under the Global Britain strategy, London is following in Washington’s footsteps to tilt back to the Asia-Pacific. It has deployed the strike group of Royal Navy and new aircraft carrier HMS Queen Elizabeth, now navigating the South China Sea. Meanwhile, Japan is emerging as a more prominent global and regional military power. Kishida visited London as part of his tour to G7 nations, which brought him to Washington on Friday to meet with U.S. President Biden. The trip comes after Kishida’s government announced a plan to double military spending over the next five years and released a national security strategy that names China “the biggest strategic challenge.” The U.S. is also encouraging Japan’s military buildup, and Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin and Secretary of State Antony Blinken hosted their Japanese counterparts for talks Wednesday as part of an effort to strengthen the alliance. The U.K. already gets more involved in the region following the signing of the AUKUS, a trilateral security initiative joining Australia, the United Kingdom and the United States. The Japan-U.K. RAA will pose a greater threat to the security and peace of the Asia-Pacific. However, neither Britain nor Japan has the strength to support their ambitions, encumbered by their shrinking economies. The U.K.-Japan alliance is also rejected by many countries in the region, whose sufferings under the Japanese invasion during WWII were not a distant memory. (Global Times) | 