Japan's Relations with Muslim Asia

This book offers a useful and extensive account of Japan’s past discoveries and present interactions with Muslim states and societies across Asia. Bearing in mind the U.S.-led global meta-narrative of Islam spoken in tandem with security and threats, this book examines how this reconciles with Japan’s self-proclaimed “values-based” approach to diplomacy across Asia in the twenty-first century. The author considers Japan’s historic conceptualization and learning of Islam, and its acute needs for access to markets and energy from Muslim-majority states in Asia. He also argues that Japan securitizes Islam in a manner distinct from Western, Russian, or Chinese securitization today, but that Japan promotes itself as a model for human security and development across an Asia inclusive of Muslim states. Japan’s approach to Islam and Muslim societies today offers much from which other great powers can learn.

“Japan’s Relation with Muslim Asia touches on important points in Japan’s strategies toward Muslim-majority states in different dimensions, its ‘unique’ approach to the securitization of Islam may not be clear. The book is an attempt to add a new and fresh perspective to the existing literature. Its diverse, multi-language references will open many paths for further research on this topic. … this book is a must-have for anyone interested in Japanese-Muslim relations.” (Mustafa Onur Yalçın, Insight Turkey, Vol. 23 (2), 2021)

“Combining sensitivities to Japanese culture and psyche with clinical analysis of its international relations, Barber has written an ambitious, intriguing and interesting book about Japan’s relations with “Muslim Asia,” a geographical concept employed to cover not only West Asia but also Southeast Asia and Central Asia. To cover Tokyo’s perception and policy towards such a vast stretch of space is ambitious, but that academic ambition is matched by his linguistic skills to dig deeply into Japanese sources to reveal the intricacies and nuances of debate among policy makers, businessmen and academics there. Barber offers an opportunity to reconsider Japan’s policy towards Muslims and their countries, and he insists on the importance of Islam in Japan’s relations with Muslim Asia. To back up his argument, the author discusses a number of specific cases of diplomatic importance. This discussion makes a fascinating reading of Japan’s policy towards that area.” (Takahashi Kazuo, Professor Emeritus of Open University of Japan, Japan)

“This book gives an unprecedented view of Japanese diplomacy in Asia. It also draws groundbreaking conclusions from numerous materials. Diplomacy between Japan and Islamic countries has not been addressed much. This book gives light to new developments in international politics, making us think about how Japan can play a rather important role in the international community. It can serve as an important guideline for Japanese diplomacy.” (Miyata Osamu, Chairman of the Center for Contemporary Islamic Studies in Japan, Japan)

“As Asia's relations have expanded substantially with the Muslim World in general and the Middle East in particular, in the last forty years, so have the bilateral cultural ties. While much has been written on the burgeoning bilateral economic and political ties, the scholarship on cultural influences, for the most parts, remain spars and scattered. In this pioneering and insightful case study, B. Bryan Barber provides the reader with a rare glimpse into the impact of Islam and Muslims on Japanese society. In addition to being a very interesting case study that shatters the essentialist myth of a monolithic Islam, the book is also a contribution to our understanding of cultural mutation and assimilation and how Islam assumes different characters in different historical and social conditions. Highly recommended for courses on Asian studies and Islamic studies.” (Manochehr Dorraj, Professor of International Affairs at Texas Christian University, USA)

B. Bryan Barber is Research Fellow at the Mohsin and Fauzia Jaffer Center for Muslim World Studies, Florida International University, USA, and Teaching Fellow at the Center for Preparatory Studies, Nazarbayev University, Kazakhstan.