OVERVIEW

Since the end of the Second World War policy towards Japan has rarely been a priority issue for the British government and has only occasionally been discussed in the cabinet.

Two main aims dominated British policy towards Japan in the forty years covered in this chapter. The first was to ensure that Japan did not again pose a threat to world peace and British interests. The second was to develop beneficial economic relations through trade and investment. This became the main priority from about 1965

During the Cold War deterring Japan from joining the communist bloc was always a dominant consideration. Wartime memories also ensured that Britain remained conscious of the threat from right-wing extremist nationalism.As trade issues dominated relations with Japan during these years ministers responsible for trade, industry and finance were often more involved in determining policy than foreign secretaries.

The day to day work on the formation of policy was largely delegated to officials, but ministers especially those who made official visits to Tokyo while they were in office ensured that policies reflected political pressures on ministers from MPs, businesses and trade unions as well as from public opinion reflected in the media.

Few foreign secretaries since Anthony Eden gave much attention to relations with Japan. In the forty years covered in this essay only R.A. Butler, Sir Alec Douglas Home (who visited Japan in 1963 and was due to go again in 1972 but his visit had to be cancelled) and Geoffrey Howe in the latter half of the 1980s took more than a passing interest in Japan. Other foreign secretaries who visited Japan were R.A. Butler who went there in 1964, Michael Stewart who followed in 1965 and went again in 1970, George Brown who made a truncated visit to Japan in January 1968, Anthony Crosland tagged a short visit to Tokyo onto a tour of China in 1976 (he had been to Japan previously in other capacities) and Lord Carrington who visited Japan in 1982.

The main purpose of these visits was to take part in the regular Anglo-Japanese consultations at foreign minister level, which began in 1963. The international topics discussed were wide-ranging, covering world affairs, UN issues and aid but the main focus tended to be on the Asian region.