Last week’s meeting of Group of Seven leaders in Canada had high hopes from six of the exclusive multilateral club. But they failed to realize that the US – not just US President Donald Trump – no longer sees value in large and exclusive multilateral groupings like the G7, the Group of 20, East Asian Summit, the UN and its related organizations such as the World Health Organization, the World Trade Organization, and the Human Rights Council. Instead, Washington views the US’ comparative advantages being best achieved through an American leader who understands that the currency of international relations in the 21st century is not multilateralism but comprehensive national power. This does not exclude “minilateral” groupings such as the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue between the US, Australia, India, and Japan; or the AUKUS security partnership between Australia, Britain, and the US or the “Squad” (Australia, the Philippines, the U.S, and Japan), all of which are smaller groups of like-minded countries that can make decisions quickly, divert resources efficiently, and not be hobbled by the ungainliness of larger multilateral organizations.

These macro-trends in international affairs have transformative consequences for Japan and the rest of America’s allies. Whether you are Tokyo or Ottawa, Canberra or Seoul, you must calculate your relationship with the US based on the equation that you can no longer rely on the US prioritizing the collective good as its calculus for its national interests; i.e., that the peace, security and prosperity of US allies brings security to the US. In the new post-liberal hegemonic order, the US cannot........

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