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Line of Advantage: Japan’s Grand Strategy in the Era of Abe Shinzō (Contemporary Asia in the World) Paperback – March 22, 2022

by Michael Green (Author)
4.7 4.7 out of 5 stars 38 ratings
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No other country has devised a grand strategy for managing China’s rising economic and military power as deliberately or successfully as Japan. Seeking to counter Chinese ambitions toward regional hegemony, Japan has taken an increasingly assertive role in East Asia and the world. During the tenure of Prime Minister Abe Shinzo, the country pursued closer security cooperation with the United States and other democracies, established a more centralized national defense system, and advanced rules and norms to preserve the open regional order in the Indo-Pacific that is crucial to its prosperity and survival―all while managing an important economic relationship with China.

In Line of Advantage, Michael J. Green provides a groundbreaking and comprehensive account of Japan’s strategic thinking under Abe. He explains the foundational logic and the worldview behind this approach, from key precedents in Japanese history to the specific economic, defense, and diplomatic priorities shaping contemporary policy toward China, the United States, the two Koreas, and the Indo-Pacific region. Drawing on two decades of access to Abe and other Japanese political, military, and business leaders, Green provides an insider’s perspective on subjects such as how Japan pursued competition with China without losing the benefits of economic cooperation. Assessing the strengths and weaknesses of Japan’s new active role, Line of Advantage sheds new light on a period with profound implications for the future of U.S. competition with China and international affairs in Asia more broadly.
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Previous page
  1. Part of series
    Contemporary Asia in the World
  2. Print length
    328 pages
  3. Language
    English
  4. Publisher
    Columbia University Press
  5. Publication date
    March 22, 2022
  6. Dimensions
    6 x 0.75 x 9 inches
  7. ISBN-10
    0231204671
  8. ISBN-13
    978-0231204675
  9. See all details
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Editorial Reviews

Review

This is a detailed and thoughtful analysis of the strategic ambitions of one of Japan’s most important postwar political leaders. Its strength lies in its identification of Abe as one of Japan’s most important foreign policy thinkers and its detailed account of how Abe capitalized on foreign policy opportunities to better position Japan in a world that is increasingly challenging its postwar strategy. -- Sheila A. Smith, author of Japan Rearmed: The Politics of Military Power

For a time, the United States was AWOL from our traditional duty as leader of the West. Michael J. Green thoughtfully and professionally chronicles the ascent of Abe into that void. Academically rigorous yet guided by a master policy maker’s feel, this is a book that Asianists will use as a resource well into the future. -- Richard L. Armitage, former deputy secretary of state and president of Armitage International

In this extremely timely book, Michael J. Green sheds light on Japan’s emergence as a leader in its strategy on China, as well as in Abe’s politics and diplomacy. Green, a highly experienced scholar-practitioner, demonstrates formidable knowledge and profound insight on Japan’s history, geopolitics, and statecraft, peppering the text with many personal and intimate conversations with top U.S. and Japanese decision makers. He envisions the U.S.-Japan alliance as the twenty-first-century equivalent of the Anglo-American alliance, wearing the mantle of the Pacific mission and maritime strategy of John MacMurray and George Kennan. -- Yoichi Funabashi, author of Meltdown: Inside the Fukushima Nuclear Crisis

Line of Advantage is a splendid book for developing an understanding of Japan’s changing grand strategy and its development across the political spectrum ― East West Notes

Green knows Japanese foreign policy like few others. -- Andrew J. Nathan ― Foreign Affairs

Named an editor's pick best book of 2022. ― Foreign Affairs

A splendid book....a valuable resource for interested scholars, policy-makers, government officials, and even a more general audience of Japanese politics enthusiasts. It is an essential read to understand how Japan intends to navigate the years and decades to come. ― International Affairs

A remarkable early historical narrative of Abe’s legacy in Japanese foreign and security policy. It is well worth a read by policymakers and postgraduate students alike. ― Japan Review

A book that anyone interested in Japanese security should read to understand how the country got to this point and how it will answer the current geopolitical challenges. ― Japanese Journal of Political Science

About the Author

Michael J. Green is director of Asian studies and chair in modern and contemporary Japanese politics and foreign policy at the Edmund A. Walsh School of Foreign Service at Georgetown University as well as senior vice president for Asia and Japan chair at the Center for Strategic and International Studies. He has served at senior levels of the National Security Council, and his books include By More Than Providence: Grand Strategy and American Power in the Asia-Pacific Since 1783 (Columbia, 2017).

Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Columbia University Press (March 22, 2022)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Paperback ‏ : ‎ 328 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0231204671
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0231204675
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 2.31 pounds
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 6 x 0.75 x 9 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.7 4.7 out of 5 stars 38 ratings

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Michael J. Green

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Customer reviews

4.7 out of 5 stars
4.7 out of 5
38 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

Duy Hoang
5.0 out of 5 stars Insightful analysis from a leading Japan expert
Reviewed in the United States on December 26, 2022
Verified Purchase
As the US and much of the world is figuring out how to deal with a revisionist China, Abe Shinzo was a thought leader and practitioner in grand strategy.

“Line of Advantage” details Abe’s pro-active moves to shape a Free and Open Indo-Pacific — employing both external and internal balancing strategies. Author Michael Green masterfully places Abe in the context of Japan’s opportunities and challenges from the Meiji era, to pre WW2, then during the Cold War and since the 1990s.

Things I found really interesting:

- How Abe learned from his mediocre first stint as prime minister (2006-2007) to become a historic and consequential figure in his second term (2012-2020)
- Abe and Japan’s strategic contributions to the liberal order since the 2010s. To be honest I hadn’t previously recognized the thought leadership on international affairs from Japan
- That Abe considered support for democracy and human rights as a differentiator between Japan and China. This is frankly a work-in-progress. Let’s see how Japan pursues idealism (along with its hard headed realism) in places such as southeast Asia.

Importantly, Abe institutionalized much of his vision through multilateral structures (e.g., the Quad) and legislation enabling collective security and a much more effective PM’s office. It will be interesting to see how future Japanese leaders evolve and further the line of advantage achieved by Abe Shinzo.
One person found this helpful
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Carl Ford
5.0 out of 5 stars Michael Green Hits Another Home Run
Reviewed in the United States on April 20, 2022
Verified Purchase
If you only read one book on Japan this year "Line of Advantage" should be at the top of your list and required reading for anyone interested in understanding Japan's strategic military, economic, and foreign policy thinking in the twenty-first Century and it's historical antecedents. Especially Chapter 5 on Korea is important reading for officials in Washington, Seoul, and Japan. The only winner in failing to heal the differences between Seoul and Tokyo is China. Washington should make this a top priority in breathing life into FIOP. I found Table C.1 Post-Abe political leaders’ views on national security strategy in the last chapter particularly helpful. Topnotch scholarly writing at its best.
3 people found this helpful
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Steven S Payson
4.0 out of 5 stars Japan is a leader on responding to China
Reviewed in the United States on June 1, 2022
Verified Purchase
This is an excellent book for people interested in foreign policy or competition with China. There’s a fair bit of Japanese history in here, but Green (a Japan expert at CSIS and a serious Asia policy wonk) focuses on how former prime minister Shinzo Abe has transformed Japanese grand strategy to shape the environment around China by reinforcing the ability of the rest of the Indo-Pacific to resist expansionism by Beijing. Green argues that Japan’s most important answer to the challenge posed by China is the US-Japan alliance, and Abe helped formulate US policy to adopt the Quad. According to Green, “there is no doubt that, of America’s allies, Japan has emerged as the most important thought leader on China strategy.”
2 people found this helpful
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Cynthia A Gregson
5.0 out of 5 stars Japan is back!
Reviewed in the United States on May 12, 2022
Verified Purchase
Our most important ally in Asia is stirring and exerting its diplomatic, informational, military and economic power, greatly supporting our interests in a very fraught region.
One person found this helpful
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tdolen
4.0 out of 5 stars shines light on Japan’s new strategic position on Asia
Reviewed in the United States on June 14, 2022
Verified Purchase
Having listened to Michael Green on the Asia Chessboard podcast, it was good to see him fully express his view of Japan’s new strategic foreign policy and the role Shinzo Abe had in crafting this policy. Green is a hawk when it comes to China. Overall it was a good read. Some Japanese terms were included in text in romaji form. It would have been useful to include native Japanese as well.
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Top reviews from other countries

JMB
5.0 out of 5 stars Good Reference
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on November 2, 2023
Verified Purchase
One of the best examinations of the SDP
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oxtiger
5.0 out of 5 stars Depth of knowledge and up to date analysis
Reviewed in Australia on June 12, 2022
Verified Purchase
A through analysis of the change in grand strategy that Japan has undertaken under Abe. Green deftly places Abe’s strategy in its historical context whilst providing a detailed account of the intellectual origin, purpose, and implementation of Japanese strategy.
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Gabriel Stein
4.0 out of 5 stars Very interesting
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on October 12, 2022
Verified Purchase
“there is no doubt that, of America’s allies, Japan has emerged as the most important thought leader on China strategy.”

Whether this quote from the book is correct or not, it is certainly the case that Japan is key ally of the United States when it comes to confronting China. Partly of course for geographic reasons (including a newfound willingness to assist Taiwan if attacked), but also because Japan, possibly together with Korea and Vietnam, has a much greater understanding of China than any European power will have. For this reason alone, this book is worth reading. As it happens there are other reasons to read it as well.
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