Japan's Shinzo Abe set to build bridges in Laos, Cambodia visits
Analysts in Tokyo warn that the Japanese leader won't dislodge China as the most-favoured nation in the two Asean countries
Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe arrives in Cambodia today before going on to Laos tomorrow on state visits that have been arranged at very short notice and are designed to build bridges between Tokyo and the two Association of Southeast Asian Nations states.
And while Beijing will undoubtedly be watching Abe's moves very closely, analysts in Tokyo believe it is unlikely that the Japanese leader will be able to wrench the two nations out of China's sphere of influence.
That does not mean the new suitor will be spurned out of hand, however, as Cambodia and Laos look to play the two regional superpowers off against one another to their maximum benefit.
"It's all part of the geopolitical game," said Jun Okumura, a visiting scholar at the Meiji Institute for Global Affairs.
"China is already very chummy with these countries, but everyone is aware that if Japan tries harder to build new working relationships with Cambodia and Laos, then Beijing will have to respond and try harder," he said.
And while that does carry with it the danger of over-investment in an economy, Okumura warned, the benefits of assistance to these two states will spill over into neighbouring nations and eventually be felt throughout the region.