Akademik Veri Yönetim Sistemi
Pacific Review, 2026 (SSCI, Scopus)
This article argues that Japan is undertaking a continental turn that complements, rather than replaces, its Indo-Pacific orientation. Confronted with the erosion of the U.S.-led liberal order, supply-chain weaponisation, and maritime insecurity, Tokyo is recalibrating strategy through what may be called ‘connectivity as strategy’, using infrastructure, logistics, and standards to project influence without coercion. The Trans-Caspian Middle Corridor and pragmatic cooperation with the Organization of Turkic States (OTS) constitute a key focal point, functioning as a selective risk-diversification mechanism for Japan that pragmatically complements Türkiye’s transcontinental ambitions. Tracing historical and ideational lineages, including Pan-Asianism/Turanism and Hashimoto Ryūtarō’s Eurasian diplomacy, the study conceptualises Japan’s approach as one of autonomous complementarity and contextual liberalism. This framework combines alliance reinforcement with strategic autonomy while adapting rule-based norms to pragmatic regional realities. Empirically, the article analyses Japan-Türkiye complementarities through JICA, JBIC, and TİKA cooperation, alongside structural challenges, including Japan’s economic constraints, the OTS’s nascent institutional capacity, logistical gaps, and the regional influence of China and Russia. It concludes that by institutionalising a selective partnership with the OTS focused on quality connectivity, Japan can enhance its strategic autonomy while contributing to stability across Eurasia’s inner core.