Secretary of State Hillary Clinton launched her Asia tour in Japan Monday calling US-Pacific ties "indispensable" for curbing problems like climate change, the global financial crisis and nuclear weapons.
The first chief US diplomat in half a century to start her diplomacy in Asia, Clinton arrived here amid warnings about a greenhouse gas timebomb in Siberia and Canada, a shrinking Japanese economy and North Korea's defiance over its nuclear programs and possible preparations for a missile launch.
"I have chosen Asia on my first trip as secretary of state to convey that America's relationships across the Pacific are indispensable to addressing the challenges and seizing the opportunities of the 21st century," she said. Clinton was set to meet Japanese leaders on Tuesday and the following day travel on to Indonesia, followed by South Korea and finally China, a rising geopolitical and economic power with which the United States wants to partner.
With historic ally Japan and new partners, "we can begin together to build networks around the world to help us solve problems that none of us can solve alone," she said after arriving at Tokyo's Haneda airport.
In her talks with Japan's leaders and citizens, she said, "we will be looking for ways to collaborate on issues that go beyond just our mutual concerns to really addressing the global concerns." She said these would include "climate change and clean energy, Afghanistan, Pakistan, nuclear proliferation and other common concerns."
It may be no accident Clinton first mentioned climate change, which she calls a national and global security threat. China is key to resolving the problem as it has overtaken the United States as the biggest greenhouse gas emitter. Over the weekend, new studies have warned of triggers in the natural environment, including a greenhouse-gas timebomb in Siberia and Canada, that could viciously amplify global warming.
Clinton omitted North Korea, a key topic for the three north-east Asian states she is visiting but one which analysts say should be discussed carefully behind the scenes for now as the new US administration reviews its policy.
Analysts see Pyongyang's increasingly bellicose stance as a bid to keep its concerns on the international agenda as the new administration of President Barack Obama lists Afghanistan, Iraq, Iran and the Middle East as priorities. Hours before her arrival, North Korea fuelled speculation that it was preparing to test a long-range missile by suggesting it would go ahead with a rocket launch as part of what it called a space programme.