Understanding the meaning of the dueling trips requires a closer look at the larger context of China and Japan’s recent international diplomatic efforts.
Japanese and Cambodian foreign ministers agree that their countries will continue to cooperate in supporting the elimination of Russian landmines and unexploded bombs in Ukraine amid Moscow's prolonged war in the Eastern European state.
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida pledged in his New Year's address on Jan. 1 that Japan will play a leading role in diplomacy in 2023 as the host of the Group of Seven summit while serving as a nonpermanent member of the U.N. Security Council.
Japan and five Central Asian nations affirm the importance of the rules-based international order, as concerns are growing that the order could be undermined amid Russia's invasion of Ukraine and China's intensifying military activities in the Indo-Pacific region.