Britain has broken ranks with the United States to join China in the founding of the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB). As other nations like Australia and South Korea choose to similarly defy U.S. opposition to the AIIB, and join, it could shake Japan’s confidence in its own position and even in the reliability of its alliance with the U.S.

Jin Ying warns the U.S. to be weary of Japan, citing their history of “running away with the bone” as the U.S. and China jostle for influence in the Pacific. Ying agrees with Democratic advisor Zbigniew Brzezinski that the U.S. should sign a major charter with China, just as it did with Britain during WWII.

Zhou Bo posits that an essential component to improving frosty Japan-China relations is an equal commitment to develop shared maritime procedures, such as the Code for Unplanned Encounters at Sea (CUES). But first, the two sides need to agree upon a common Air Defense Identification Zone (ADIZ).

Although Xi and Abe agreed to deemphasize their conflict over the East China Sea, past efforts in this direction have not proved successful for long. Last month’s release of the interim report on Japanese-U.S. progress in revising their defense guidelines has become the latest object of Chinese concern.

Japan and the US are revising defense guidelines for the first time since 1997, and though not explicit, China’s sovereignty claims are the cause. Yet both Japan and China are making slight efforts to defuse escalation and reemphasize communication.

Given recent territorial moves by China, as well as heightened aggressive rhetoric, Curtis Chin analyzes the parallels between China currently and Japan as it existed in the past. Additionally, Chin asserts that the world’s powers should work to lower tensions so that peace and prosperity can exist in the Asia-Pacific region.

China and the US are big countries in the Asia-Pacific. China appreciates a constructive US presence in the region. But it will also be unequivocally opposed to the US endangering Chinese national interests while developing ties with other Asia-Pacific nations, writes Fu Mengzi.

Following the first visit to Japan by a U.S. president in nearly two decades, Stephen Harner examines President Barack Obama’s recent tour of four East Asian nations in order to truly understand how U.S.-Japan relations are advancing and what this means for the future of Sino-U.S. relations given current tensions between China and Japan.

Sino-Japanese relations have been strained due to confrontations regarding the Diaoyu Islands and state visits to the Yasukuni Shrine by Japanese leaders. In order to mitigate these tensions, it is imperative that the Chinese government adjusts its official policies in order to shift the international perception of Japan in their favor.

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, with the political support of right wing conservative forces, is seeking to amend Article 9 of the Constitution, which stipulates that Japan is no longer able to maintain a standing army, navy and air force, and forfeits all rights to belligerency.