Answer:
Japan is one of the world’s most successful democracies and largest economies. The U.S.-Japan Alliance is the cornerstone of U.S. security interests in Asia and is fundamental to regional stability and prosperity. The Alliance is based on shared vital interests and values, including: the maintenance of stability in the Indo-Pacific region: the preservation and promotion of political and economic freedoms; support for human rights and democratic institutions; and, the expansion of prosperity for the people of both countries and the international community as a whole.
2020 marks the 60th anniversary of the signing of the U.S.-Japan Security Treaty. The U.S.-Japan Alliance was strengthened in 2015 through the release of the revised U.S.-Japan Defense Guidelines, which provide for new and expanded forms of security-oriented cooperation. Japan provides bases as well as financial and material support to U.S. forward-deployed forces, which are essential for maintaining stability in the region. In January 2016 the United States and Japan signed a new five-year package of host nation support for U.S. forces in Japan. In December 2016, the United States returned a major portion of the Northern Training Area, nearly 10,000 acres, reducing the amount of land utilized by the United States on Okinawa by close to 20 percent.
Because of the two countries’ combined economic and diplomatic impact on the world, the U.S.-Japan relationship has become global in scope. The United States and Japan cooperate on a broad range of global issues, including development assistance, global health, environmental and resource protection, and women’s empowerment. The countries also work together to promote integrity in Information and Communications Technology supply chains and to ensure a secure transition to 5G networks. We collaborate broadly in science and technology in such areas as brain science, aging, infectious disease, personalized medicine, and international space exploration. We are working intensively to expand already strong people-to-people ties in education, science, and other areas.
Japan and the United States collaborate closely on international diplomatic initiatives. The United States consults with Japan and the Republic of Korea on policy regarding North Korea. The United States coordinates with Japan and Australia under the auspices of the Trilateral Strategic Dialogue and the Security and Defense Cooperation Forum. The United States and Japan coordinate with India trilaterally and in the U.S.-Australia-India-Japan Consultations. In Southeast Asia, U.S.-Japan cooperation advances maritime security and economic development. Outside Asia, Japanese political and financial support has significantly assisted U.S. efforts on a variety of global issues arising, including countering ISIL and terrorism, working to stop the spread of the Ebola and other emerging pandemic infections, advancing environmental goals, maintaining solidarity in the face of Russian aggression in the region and beyond, assisting developing countries, countering piracy, and standing up for human rights and democracy. Japan is an indispensable partner in the United Nations and the second-largest contributor to the UN budget. Japan broadly supports the United States on nonproliferation and nuclear issues. Japan and the United States are also making progress toward our shared vision of a free and open Indo-Pacific region through partnerships such as the Japan-U.S. Strategic Energy Partnership (JUSEP), Japan-U.S. Strategic Digital Economy Partnership (JUSDEP), and the Japan-U.S. Mekong Power Partnership (JUMPP).
The United States established diplomatic relations with Japan in 1858. During World War II, diplomatic relations between the United States and Japan were severed in the context of the war that followed Japan’s 1941 attack on Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. After years of fighting in the Pacific region, Japan signed an instrument of surrender in 1945. Normal diplomatic relations were reestablished in 1952, when the Supreme Commander for the Allied Powers, which had overseen the postwar Allied occupation of Japan since 1945, disbanded. The Treaty of Mutual Cooperation and Security between Japan and the United States was signed in 1960.
