Historical Dictionary of United States-Japan ... - Bakumatsu Films

256 • U.S.–JAPAN TREATY OF FRIENDSHIP
Conclusion of this treaty confirmed an idea that was already current
among policymakers in Tokyo: Japan was a member of a coterie
of great powers. The treaty also confirmed that Japan was recognized
as such by the United States. Following the outbreak of the
Sino–Japanese War, 1937–1945 in July 1937, however, Japan appeared
less interested in being included as a member of any great
power coterie than it was in establishing its political domination over
China. It furthermore attacked American interests in China, as dramatically
evidenced by the Panay Incident. Debate in Washington
soon turned to the idea of economic pressure.
President Franklin D. Roosevelt announced on 26 July 1939 that
Japan was being given the mandatory six months’ notice of the abrogation
of the treaty. This meant that the United States would be in a
position in January 1940 to impose trade sanctions on Japan. Because
Japan’s economic well-being depended on close commercial relations
with the United States, such a step clarified American opposition
to Japan’s policy of aggression. At the same time, however, the
door to the two nations’ trade had not been shut. The application—or
non-application—of sanctions would depend on subsequent Japanese
actions. Foreign Minister Kichisaburō Nomura worked to ensure
respect for foreign rights and interests in China and for the hallowed
American principle of the Open Door. He was undermined, however,
by Japanese troops on the ground in China, as well as by his
subordinates in the Foreign Ministry, and the U.S.–Japan Treaty of
Commerce and Navigation was abrogated in late January 1940.
U.S.–JAPAN TREATY OF FRIENDSHIP. See KANAGAWA
TREATY.
U.S.–JAPAN YEN DOLLAR COMMITTEE. The U.S.–Japan Yen
Dollar Committee was established with a U.S.–Japan joint announcement
made in November 1983. Its purpose is to serve as forum
for Japanese and U.S. financial authorities to discuss financial
matters. The committee discussed many financial topics, including
issues relating to the Yen–Dollar exchange rate, the liberalization of
Japanese financial and capital markets, the internationalization of the
yen, and others. In May 1984, the committee announced a report including
the following points, which were actually carried out: Liber-