A rising China and receding America has Japan once again focused on the confluence of the Pacific and Indian Oceans. Yet the recent Free and Open Indo-Pacific (FOIP) vision — to promote a new regional security environment anchored by India, Australia, Japan, and the United States — is in stark contrast to Japan’s previous, and successful, “southward advance” described in Taizo Miyagi’s highly rated Japan’s Quest for Stability in Southeast Asia: Navigating the Turning Points in Postwar Asia. More…