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President-elect Obama’s pick for Ambassador to Japan is  a wise move. Joseph Nye  will be well-suited to improve relations with Japan and its neighbors. I meet Dr. Nye during a Q&A session on Japan-U.S. Relations and have read some of his works. He is a proponent of soft power which is an area of international relations which establishes a more effective security than military or political action alone. I recommend reading the CSIS Report: U.S. – Japan Alliance, Getting Asia Right through 2020 written by Richard L. Armitage and Joseph S. Nye to learn how he thinks. Here is an excerpt:

“With the goal of “getting Asia right,” there is the question of where the U.S.- Japan alliance fits within this strategy. Some argue that if we rely too much on the U.S.-Japan alliance, we and Japan will be isolated in Asia. They point to the immediate tensions between Japan and China and between Japan and Korea over historical issues and advocate a shift in our long-term strategy to China. We believe this construct would needlessly weaken our greatest strategic asset in the region—the close U.S.-Japan alliance. The alliance can and should remain at the core of the United States’ Asia strategy. The key to the success of this strategy is for the alliance itself to continue to evolve from an exclusive alliance based on a common threat toward a more open, inclusive alliance based on common interests and values.

You can read more about the appointment as reported by Yoichi Kato for the Asahi Shimbun:  ”The incoming Barack Obama administration has decided to appoint former Assistant Secretary of Defense and Harvard University Prof. Joseph Nye as the new ambassador to Japan. This was revealed on Jan. 7. With the selection of high-ranking officers responsible for East Asian affairs at the White House, State Department, Defense Department now over, the administration’s lineup of major players on its Asia policy team is complete.

It is unprecedented for the incoming ambassador to Japan to be determined before the establishment of the new administration. The step is seen as reflecting the Obama administration’s attachment of importance to relations with Japan. According to a relevant source, Nye has been informed of the administration’s decision and he is expected to accept the offer.

He will be formally named ambassador to Japan following the President’s nomination and the Senate’s approval. Incumbent Ambassador Schieffer is scheduled to leave Japan ahead of the presidential inauguration on Jan. 20.

Nye, who served as assistant secretary of defense in the Clinton administration, was responsible for the so-called 1996 redefinition of the Japan-U.S. security system. He has been involved deeply in Japan-U.S. relations, as seen in the fact that he formulated the Armitage-Nye Report twice jointly with former Deputy Secretary of State Richard Armitage: in 2000 shortly before the establishment of the Bush administration and in 2007 ahead of the last Presidential election. The Report is a comprehensive strategic text on U.S. policy toward Japan as its ally.

He is also known as an advocate of “smart power” that calls for the use of soft power, such as values and cultures, as a diplomatic means, without placing a disproportionate emphasis on hard power, such as military might.

In June 2008, amidst the presidential race, Nye, along with former Secretary of Navy Danzig, contributed to the Asahi Shimbun an Obama camp Japan policy essay, reading: “The U.S.-Japan alliance remains the cornerstone of American policy in the Asia-Pacific region.” He has been playing a pivotal role in policy. His appointment as ambassador to Japan seems to be based on the positive assessment of such achievements.”

Check out additional information on the appointment here and here.