Japan’s Post-war Energy Diplomacy And Its Inspirations For China

Energy diplomacy started rising after WWII and has become an important component of economy and politics in the world. The two oil crises pushed energy diplomacy to the climax on a global scale. Japan, as a country lacking of energy resources, stood out in the rising of energy. Japan has been under the dual influence of American support and suppress. With the economic recovery and increasing role of oil in the energy structure of the world, Japan’s demand for resources like oil has been increasing. Japan has to import most of its energy demands, as a result, it has high degree of external dependence. During the two oil crises, Japan carried out vigorously energy diplomacy to Middle East and sought diversification strategy, resulting in its emergency characteristic of energy diplomacy in that period. However, there has been great change in world pattern after Cold War and international energy situation has become more complicated, Japanese energy diplomacy is confronted with more challenges. The September 11th attacks and nuclear leakage in Fukushima had strong impact on Japanese energy diplomacy policy, but due to its flexible diplomacy, Japan narrowly averted the turbulence. Japanese vicious competitive means in the process of carrying out its energy diplomacy had generated negative influences on other countries, thus destroying the stability of energy order. China has transformed from an oil export country to oil import country. This role transformation confronts China with unprecedented problems. This paper, based on the current developing situation of China’s energy diplomacy, deals with (sums up) the inspirations of Japan’s energy diplomacy for China through the researches and analyses of Japan.