PACIFIC PERSPECTIVES : Till ‘92, Japan Can Say Yes

Japan has not simply traded places with the Soviet Union as Enemy No. 1. It has also bruised U.S. pride. Americans think Japan knocked them off the top rung of the economic ladder.

The media in both countries are having a field day reporting the salvos of contentious statements and accusations crisscrossing the Pacific. Author Shintaro Ishihara is right when he argues that trade friction between the two countries is Americans’ fault and that they should put their own house in order before criticizing Japan. I understand Ishihara’s indignation.

But Japan should be conciliatory, at least through the 1992 presidential election in the United States, when George Bush might encounter pressure to become a Tokyo-basher.

Postwar Prime Minister Shigeru Yoshida was right when he said, “Japan prospered as long as it worked hand-in-hand with the Anglo-Saxons.” It is in Japan’s best interests to remain friendly with the United States.

Some Japanese will say this is weak-kneed diplomacy and kowtowing to foreign pressure, an unpopular position in Japan. Historically, the Japanese have been hard on yes-men who seemed soft on other countries.

But concession and compromise are essential for Japan’s prosperity into the 21st Century. We must remove structural impediments to trade, give Americans less reason to complain and wait patiently for the storm to blow over.