This text traces the evolution of Japan's alliance relationship with the United States from 1951 to the post-Cold War era with particular reference to the politics of defence production and related technology-sharing. The status and role of the alliance in the post-Cold War regional security environment are also addressed. Trade tensions and the politicisation of defence technology-sharing are symptomatic of a deeper malaise in the relationship.

The central theme of the study is the potential danger of significant tensions arising in the relationship from the continued play of parallel rather than identical national interests. The parallel and widening gap between the respective interests of the allies has the potential to form a fatal flaw in the relationship. A failure to move beyond bilateralism to new multilateral approaches to mutual security issues threatens to undermine the contemporary search for peace in Northeast Asia.