【英文】兰德报告：印太地区国家对中美竞争的反应（日本篇）（68页）

A final point that discussions with Japanese experts brought out came from outside of the  Southeast Asia region in nearby Papua New Guinea, where Japan has helped establish and train  that nation’s first military band. As one specialist pointed out, “this is the first time that Japan  has helped directly shape the existence and structure of the military of a foreign country,” a  development that could be relevant as the United States and Japan look to deepen their support  for, and thereby improve the reception they receive in, Southeast Asia.139 Although such a  development clearly carries no operational implications, it was regarded by some Japanese  interlocutors as a useful precedent that could later be turned to for more-substantial engagements  with regional militaries.  

Still, as one Japanese expert warned, it is important to bear in mind that Japan’s primary  focus is on applying its new legal modalities to expanded defense cooperation in Northeast Asia,  closer to the Japanese home islands, rather than in Southeast Asia, saying that “some senior  Japanese officials have stated that [the debate over the status of the] South China Sea is  ‘over.’”140 Another Japanese expert agreed, arguing that expecting Japan to place a high degree  of attention on building partner capacity in Southeast Asia would be a mistake, since Japan is not  likely to dramatically increase its contributions in a short period, but a joint effort to “gradually”  build up ASEAN’s maritime domain awareness and ISR capabilities was more realistic.141 It is  worth remembering that challenges of politics, policy, resources, and legal and constitutional  interpretations will also continue to constrain Japan’s security cooperation with the region for  some time.