Japan, South Korea and the rise of a networked security architecture in East Asia

This article explains Japan’s and South Korea’s role in the transition from the hub- and-spokes alliance system to a networked security architecture in East Asia. It is argued that China’s contestation of the rules-based international order in East Asia has been confronted by East Asian states through a mixture of resistance and accom- modation. From a Japanese point of view, Beijing’s ascendency is considered par- ticularly disruptive for the regional order. Consequently, Japan has become a central hub in the development of the networked security architecture enacting two comple- mentary strategies: the consolidation of the alliance with the United States and the creation of new and less binding forms of bilateral, minilateral and multilateral secu- rity partnerships with Asian allies. By contrast, since Seoul considers China as an essential partner for the stabilisation of the Korean Peninsula, it has played a more peripheral role in the development of this regional networking dynamic.