Will Asian Powers Leave the US and Join Russia-China?

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Are the powerful countries in Asia starting to intend to leave the United States closer to Russia and China?

A number of Asian countries, such as Japan, South Korea, and India, began to scramble to ensure their position among the world's great powers.

Are the powerful countries in Asia starting to intend to leave the United States closer to Russia and China?

Signs of closeness were reflected when Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida considered attending the China-Japan normalization event on September 29.

According to the Global Times report, the participation was seen as an effort to increase the momentum of the summit between Kishida and Chinese President Xi Jinping.

Meanwhile, South Korea's attitude towards China was noticed when the chairman of the US House of Representatives, Nancy Pelosi, visited the country of Ginseng. When he arrived at the airport, he felt insulted because there was no official delegation to greet him, Brooking quoted him as saying.

In addition, the South Korean Presidential Office informed Pelosi that President Yoon Seok-yeol was on vacation and could not meet in person.

A few days after Pelosi's visit, South Korean Foreign Minister Park Jin traveled to Beijing to meet with China's Foreign Minister. This action is said to be to avoid confrontation with China after the visit of Washington officials.

Seeing these actions, international political observer from the Indonesian Institute of Sciences (LIPI), Riefqi Muna, said the two countries did not necessarily shift their closeness to China or Russia. Riefqie said Japan and South Korea remained close to the US.

"Japan or South Korea will not leave or stay away from the US," Riefqi said when contacted by CNNIndonesia.com on Rau (7/9).

He then said, "Both Japan and Korea, both are well-established US military alliances with different alliance-building backgrounds."

Japan became an alliance of the US after the defeat of Sakura in the Pacific War in 1945. At that time, Washington dropped bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

Meanwhile, South Korea became an ally of the US through the Mutual Defense Treaty in 1953. Washington also assisted Seoul in the Korean War against the communist ideology, North Korea.

The US even has military bases in South Korea and Japan. Until now, there are 28,500 Washington troops in the Ginseng Country. In Japan, the US army numbered about 50 thousand personnel. They are mostly in Okinawa.

Dynamic Economic Relations

Seeing this, Riefqi considered it wrong to think that the two developed countries in Asia would be close to China.

"Actually, it is not correct to say that Japan and South Korea are trying to get closer to China. However, there is a dynamic economic relationship and interdependence occurs," said the LIPI observer.

Riefqi further explained that from the aspect of the semiconductor industry, the heated relations between South Korea-China and Japan-China had strategic implications for the "technology of war" between the US and China.

Washington, in this case, is using Taiwan to fight Beijing. However, the situation became increasingly critical geopolitically after Russia invaded Ukraine.

"Then this tech-war [technology war] is heating up, especially after [US] President Joe Biden signed the law on Chips and the Science Act on August 9, 2022," Riefqi said.

Likewise with US efforts to form the CHIP-4 alliance to stem China's semiconductors. Similarly, international relations observer from the University of Indonesia Suzie Sudarman said South Korea and Japan will remain on the side of the US.

"South Korea is an ally. [They] will help Japan against China and the flash point [of dispute] with North Korea," said Suzie.

Apart from South Korea-Japan, a country in South Asia, India, is also said to be showing signs of moving closer to Russia.

India Coming to Russia?

New Delhi has been at loggerheads with Beijing over the issue of national borders, a classic problem that looks set to continue to emerge. However, the country is showing signs of glancing at Moscow.

India forges economic cooperation with Russia, a close ally of China. The country led by Narendra Modi also buys oil from Moscow.

Foto ilustrasi. Bendera India. (iStockphoto/da-kuk)

India increased its purchases of Russian oil after the invasion, taking advantage of price cuts. Russian oil previously only accounted for about 0.2 percent in India. The rest they buy from countries such as Iraq, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, and the United Arab Emirates.

Can this purchase be a sign that India is also approaching China via Russia?

Suzie emphasized that India will remain with the land of Uncle Sam.

"Just opportunistic. India is still with the US in QUAD. Opportunist for Russia's cheap oil. They think India is a friend, but it's hard to make friends," said Suzie.

Similarly, Riefqi also assessed that India's efforts were not an attempt to get closer to Beijing.

"I don't think the problem is that simple. Because the competition between the two [India-China] is quite deep," he said.

Riefqi highlighted that New Delhi's oil purchases from Russia are related to the extent to which India and the US, through QUAD, are closely intertwined.

"It will not be that easy to influence China," he said again. For him, New Delhi is playing a sophisticated diplomatic war.

He explained that India has traditionally maintained relations with Russia. However, recently they developed relations with the US through the Indo-Pacific framework.

"India is playing more balanced in relations with Russia, and relations with the US," Riefqi added.

However, he also did not deny the strong rivalry in the two countries. In the health sector, for example, China produces homemade vaccines. India did not want to lose in making its own vaccine.

The India-China feud is increasingly visible in the Indian Ocean. In late July, New Delhi launched an aircraft carrier, the INS Vikrant, aimed at silencing Beijing in the waters.

Beijing also looked worried. China's state media, Global Times, even carried observer comments that the carrier was only medium in size. Meanwhile, Beijing's aircraft carrier, the Liaoning, is a large fleet.