Mulgan, Aurelia George

Abstract
This article attempts to measure and define the level of “securitization” of the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) in Japanese national politics by analyzing both the structure of policymaking and the policy discourse on the TPP under the Abe administration until the October 2015 agreement reached in Atlanta.
Main Argument:
The TPP has been managed within the Japanese policymaking infrastructure largely as a trade policy issue, and references to its geopolitical and security aspects have been a relatively minor element of policy discourse. However, the content of public policy rhetoric on the TPP in arenas such as the Diet and its committees reveals widespread recognition of the geopolitical and security consequences of Japan joining the TPP. In this respect, as gauged from official rhetoric, Japan’s TPP policy exhibits some degree of securitization. Public comments suggest that Japanese political elites perceive the positive security externalities of the TPP as elements of multiple and mutually complementary balancing strategies against China.
PDF