Journal of US-China public administration | 2021
Nexus of Military and Economic Cooperation: Japanese Challenges in Afghanistan and Iraq
Abstract
This article asks whether the Japanese Official Development Assistance (ODA) has helped achieve its intended objectives in peacebuilding in Afghanistan and Iraq. The analysis shows that with the use of ODA and para-military resources provided by Japan Self-Defense Forces (JSDF), Japanese money has been invested heavily in Afghanistan and Iraq for the past two decades, with no major signs of improvement in “human security”, which constitutes the major argument for Japan to assist peacebuilding projects abroad. Japan still seems to have a good reason to keep assisting these fragile nations, and expecting a “co-play” between ODA and JSDF to reduce the fragility.