Japan’s Kishida shames China by visiting Ukraine as Xi meets Putin: ‘Pure antagonism’

Japanese Prime Minister, Fumio Kishida, expressed his frustration and anger over the murder of Ukrainian civilians by Russian forces during a surprise visit to Kyiv. His visit coincided with that of Chinese General Secretary, Xi Jinping’s trip to Russia.

Kishida, who had just come from a visit to India where he talked about partnering with India to “foster the region into a place that values freedom, the rule of law, free from force or coercion,” landed in Ukraine to offer condolences on behalf of all Japanese nationals to victims of the conflict. He stated that Japan will continue to aid Ukraine with every effort to bring back peace.

Kishida’s visit to Ukraine underscored the emergence of Tokyo as a counterweight to Russia’s cooperation with China, similar to the United States’ efforts. As a result, a senior European official in Kyiv labeled China’s recent visit as pure antagonism.

Ukrainian President, Volodymyr Zelensky, extended an invitation to Kishida in January. The visit coincided with Xi Jinping’s portentous trip to Moscow, which offered Ukrainian policymakers a symbolic diplomatic counterpoint.

Recent events show U.S. allies and partners in Europe coordinating with allies in the Indo-Pacific. It is a trend that the U.S. hopes will continue. Kishida’s visit to Ukraine represents one of these alliances.

Shinzo Abe was the previous Japanese Prime Minister who pioneered the concept of the “free and open Indo-Pacific” during the increased aggression in the South China Sea by Chinese forces.

Since Putin launched the full-scale offensive to overthrow the Ukrainian government, Kishida has been accelerating Japan’s upgrade of their ability to repel invasions. The latest national security strategy put emphasis on deterring a clash in the Indo-Pacific. Kishida also wants to protect and nurture the public ocean bounty that everyone shares.

India is an indispensable partner in those efforts. Kishida has been making an effort to emphasize the ideological division between India, China, and Russia. India continues to import Russian oil but has warned Moscow not to use nuclear weapons and continued to cooperate with the Quad globally.

Japan’s recent efforts have raised Ukrainian hopes that Japan could be a more effective partner in persuading other countries to take a harder line on Kremlin aggression.

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