“Reconnaissance" discusses the point of view for a strengthened partnership between GCC and Japan in the Indo-Pacific

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Reconnaissance Research held a forum on Free and Open Indo-Pacific (FOIP) and its possible effectiveness for the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries to secure their maritime security and economic prosperity, in cooperation with the Embassy of Japan in Kuwait.

The forum aimed to discover views toward issues of both East Asia and the GCC from the perspective of "Rule of Law at Sea", as well as find possible solutions to achieve stability and prosperity in both regions.

The forum was attended by diplomats, ambassadors, and faculty members at both Japanese and Kuwait universities.

During his opening remarks, KANEKO Koji, Deputy Chief of Mission at the Embassy of Japan in Kuwait, said on behalf of Ambassador-Designate of Japan to Kuwait, MORINO Yasunari, that the Indo-Pacific region is witnessing dynamic developments and is full of further economic potential, where it is also well connected with the GCC countries by the vigorous trade and logistics.

KANEKO stressed that the rule of law at sea can fully seize opportunities and utilize resources for further development because this principle would promote peace and stability by denying unilateral attempts to change the status quo, such as the events taking place in East and South of China Sea, adding that the rule of law is one of the components of their diplomatic concept of (FOIP), which contains connectivity and capacity-building in maritime security as well.

Regarding Kuwait, he stated that Kuwait expressed its firm position to support the international law and, among others, the principles in the UN Charter in face of the Russian aggression against Ukraine, which we highly appreciate "I believe that there is great potential for Japan-Kuwait joint actions to promote the rule of law under FOIP. I look forward to very meaningful discussions by the distinguished speakers and from the floor today," he concluded.

In his turn, Abdulaziz Al-Anjari, Founder and CEO of the Reconnaissance Research, said that today's forum came to celebrate the sixtieth anniversary of the beginning of diplomatic relations between Kuwait and Japan.

He added: "It is no coincidence that the official establishment of the relations between both countries came after months of Kuwait's independence. Japan was among the closest countries to the modern founders of the state of Kuwait."

Al-Anjari affirmed that Reconnaissance Research seeks to make matters such as cultural diversity and geographical difference factors of convergence between the Japanese and Kuwaiti people, to build more cooperation relations.

Al-Anjari expressed his appreciation to all participants, and affirmed the determination and continuation of Reconnaissance to move forward as an independent platform, to hold seminars and various events with all countries that have official diplomatic relations with Kuwait. 

KANEHARA Nobukatsu, Professor at Doshisha University, addressed the development of long-standing and economic relations between the GCC countries and Japan, where it became the GCC's foremost trading partner.

On the subject of Japan’s current view on the rule of law at sea, Prof. KANEHARA affirmed that Japan's Gulf policy is largely based on its economic interests, which depend on securing oil supplies and sea lanes from Gulf countries to their final destination in Japanese ports, adding "We believe that international water is half European, Asian, and African. We have to share the responsibility to defend free trade of the sea since we achieved this."

In this regard, the professor stressed the importance of forming an agreement to protect and encourage mutual investment to establish more business partnerships in all priority sectors.

He remarked: "Today, climate change and green technology. these things are still very important for the Japanese economy. We have to think beyond the oil, and we’re moving to the age of the green technology. We will be helping the Arab nations to reach a better future."

KANEHARA said that the gulf region and its stability are vital for Japan, noting that, to achieve or maintain it, there are many challenges to be considered and tackled based on the principle of friendship and mutual respect.

He noted that the achievements of humanity say a lot about wars and people are equal regardless of skin color or religion, condemning the Russian bad decision to attack Ukraine, which would weaken the country's economic situation and would be the end of the "Russian Empire."

With the reference to China, he said “After 1970, China stood with Japan against Russia, but after the Cold War ended, they started a spectacular economic growth," "we believed that they will be with us one day and they will be like us," but "under Sea of Japan our expectation was betrayed. In particular, in the law of the sea, they become expansionist and this is very wrong because the sea is free for everyone.”

KANEHARA confirmed that China’s interest is with Japan, adding “We have to persuade China that their interest is with us and they can’t pursue their interest by force, that is detrimental to the interests.”

“The Russian economy is the size of South Korea, it’s not that big so we can live without Russia but it is very difficult to live without China. But still, China can’t pass the size of the west, they can never catch up with us. India will stand up, as its population is ten years younger than the Chinese. The simple prosperity is moving from China to India. We can manage the transformation time only when we united,” he clarified.

Commenting on KANEHARA, Jonathan Gilbert, Ambassador of Australia to Kuwait said: "When I talked to Kuwaitis about the Indo-Pacific, I received questions on why Indo-Pacific matter to Kuwait. I’m surprised when they ask such a question, Kuwait's history is deeply related to the east and all your major customers are in the Indo-Pacific region. But, I feel from the (Kuwaiti) government's perspective that the region (East) doesn't get the attention it deserves (from Kuwait)," he pointed out.

"The Indo-Pacific region, from my perspective, while staying here in Kuwait for 4 years, is very important to the country’s interest not just in terms of history but also in terms of the economic reality of that. The economic center is moving east, and it’s about technology, green revolution" he pointed out.

For his part, Dr. Abdullah Sahar, Professor at Kuwait University, said that Japan imports about 4 million barrels of oil per day from the Gulf countries, and Kuwait in particular exports about 9 percent of Japan's needs, and about 90 percent of Japanese oil tankers passes through the gulf to japan.

Concerning the attacks that took place on Japanese oil tankers at sea and the destruction of Kuwaiti oil wells during the Iraqi invasion, Sahar said "Japan and the Gulf states talked of having huge storage in one of the Japanese islands that could accumulate about 19 million oil barrels to encounter any kind of emergency."

He added that having storage in one of the Japanese islands is not enough, where international laws must be applied on the sea, but according to him, the application of international law is not easy to apply, explaining: "I wish for international law to be applied but it’s not the real story of international relations, We have to distinguish between what’s reasonable and acceptable. International law isn’t necessarily reasonable. So what imposes the international law is power and interest."

"International law does not have to be logical, and what imposes law is power and personal interests. That is shown on China, where it is one of the countries that cannot be excluded from the international community due to its economic power that imposes its dominance over neighboring countries."

Dr. Sahar explained "China will always move towards its interest depending on how much power it has and since we’re witnessing an international shift of powers. Countries with powers will always try to find their ways to be at the top of the pyramid. That’s the reason why we have such political difficulties and conflicts around the region. It’s not a matter of condemning Russia, and not a matter of being sympathetic with Ukraine, it's a matter of how we think of international law in a rational manner based on our historical experience and on what is political science is saying to us."

"We Can't disassociate our national security and Japanese national security from international security, since we are in a stage of shifting from one system to another. We have to accept the fact that we have to change security terms and definitions," the professor said.

The professor then stated, "The United States and Europe are fading away and China is moving towards the top of the international pyramid. In one way or another, maybe in 2040 maximum, China will be at the top international economic system passing away from the US."

Sahar called on the Gulf states and Japan to consider their security prospective and try to manage and balance the relations between China and the United States.

In response to a question about how the Gulf countries, particularly Kuwait, can invest in the relationship with Japan to enhance new and needed regional security, he said that the bilateral relations shouldn’t only be depending on oil exchange, there should be a commercial exchange like investing in small companies and business projects, adding "I think the gulf should exchange oil for technology, not for money. Technology is the future."

In conclusion, Fahad Al-Shatti, Senior Vice President of Strategic Projects at Agility Global Logistics, praised the Kuwaiti-Japanese relations that began in the fifties of the last century and developed after Kuwait agreed in 1958 to grant the Japanese “Arabian Oil Company” a concession for oil and gas, and this agreement was one of the most significant aspects of cooperation and it established diplomatic relations between Kuwait and Japan.

Al-Shatti urged Japan to increase technological and petrochemical exchanges, stressing that the presence of raw materials in the region would deepen the relationship between the Gulf Cooperation Council countries and Japan.