Diplomatic benefits and economic costs of regional leadership: the case of Japan in Asia

Abstract The leading position in international institutions brings both economic costs and diplomatic benefits. A state that aspires to “regional leadership” usually strives to form a regional group where it can assume the top position in order to enjoy international status, and moreover, often agrees to shoulder the large economic cost of sustaining regional institutions, expecting that doing so would further enhance its status. This article examines this hypothesis by shedding light on ministry-level preferences regarding regional leadership, using diplomatic archives, memoirs, and other sources. A foreign ministry usually highly values international status and often tries to hold the leading position in regional institutions, excluding more powerful states that would deprive it of this position, with the aim of fully exploiting the diplomatic benefits. In contrast, economic ministries are usually concerned with the economic costs of holding the leading position, such as the importation of goods from “junior” partner states.