US Secretary of War Pete Hegseth and Japanese Defense Minister Shinjiro Koizumi Photo: VCG

After whining to a circle of Western officials, Japanese Defence Minister Shinjiro Koizumi finally reached his US counterpart Pete Hegseth. Yet the stark differences between the two sides' official readouts of the call deserved far more attention than the conversation itself.

In a statement, the Japanese Ministry of Defense claimed that Koizumi and Hegseth exchanged views on "the increasingly severe security situation in the Indo-Pacific region, including the radar incident against Self Defense-Force aircraft by Chinese military aircraft on December 6th," and "the ministers expressed serious concern over any actions to increase regional tensions, as China's actions are not conducive to regional peace and stability."

However, US Department of War's readout made no mention of any above specific incident, nor did it echo Japan's claim of expressing "serious concern." Notably absent was any phrasing like "China's actions are not conducive to regional peace and stability."

This phone call can be interpreted as Japan attempting to leverage US influence in the "radar illumination" saga, since Tokyo is on the back foot and desperate to turn the tide. Shen Yi, a professor at Fudan University, told the Global Times. 

Even when the US side briefly mentioned "China's military activities," the readout came across more as a routine diplomatic reassurance to an ally - nothing more, Shen said. 

Hegseth, who is usually active on social media, remained completely silent on X about this call, posting nothing related to it.

The US' true stance was already evident from the timeline. The "radar illumination" occurred on December 6. Yet the formal call between the US and Japanese defense chiefs didn't took place until five days later. 

The "radar illumination" incident was essentially a farce orchestrated by Japan itself. The facts were clear, and the US was well aware of them. Koizumi accused China of failing to provide prior notification, then was forced, after China released evidence, to acknowledge that notification had in fact been given. That blatant contradiction was visible to the entire world. Despite this clumsy performance, Japan still hoped the US would endorse its narrative. Washington, however, appeared reluctant to do so.

The difference in the latest readouts from both sides is also somewhat reflected in the recent US-Japan joint patrol over the Sea of Japan on Wednesday, following China-Russia joint drills over East China Sea, western Pacific Ocean. Reports quoted the Japanese joint chiefs of staff as saying Wednesday's exercise with the US Air Force was conducted in "an increasingly severe security environment surrounding our country." However, noticeably, Japan deployed its F-15J and F-35A—its elite fighters—while the US sent B-52H bombers, which have been in service for over 50 years. This pairing carries significant symbolic weight.

Observers have also noted that, against this backdrop, Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS George Washington returned to Commander, Fleet Activities Yokosuka, Japan, on December 11, further underscoring US' reluctance to escalate the situation.

In the five days before the call, Japan's high-profile propaganda contrasted sharply with the US' deliberate low-key restraint, revealing the true nature of their alliance more clearly than any official statement.

Nonetheless, as some analysts point out, Koizumi and his cohorts, in their over-eagerness, exposed the Japanese right wing's real intentions - a desperate push to escalate the matter. Even after being caught in a lie, Koizumi continued to stoke tensions with China in an attempt to further entangle the US, aiming to push Japan move toward becoming a "normal country" and even contemplating a direct US-China clash that Japan could exploit for its own strategic advantage.

"The question is: What makes Japan think it has any capacity to trigger a conflict between China and the US?" Shen Yi asked. 

On Thursday, White House spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt said at a press briefing that US president can maintain both a "good working relationship" with China and a "very strong alliance" with Japan even as tensions have risen between those two countries, Reuters reported. 

The US' response has already demonstrated that, within the US-Japan alliance, the hierarchy cannot be reversed. Japan is in no position to shape the trajectory of China-US relations.

After months of turbulence in China-US ties, a hard-won degree of stability has finally emerged. That stability serves US interests, and Washington won't lightly shatter it because of Japan. 

Japan wants to make a big splash in its tensions with China, but it is nowhere near the levers of influence - its ambitions far exceed its actual power.