April 13, 2015
Why should Jews be interested in Asia? And more specifically, why does the American Jewish Committee (AJC), the premier global advocate for the Jewish people, have an Asia Pacific Institute, which engages with that part of the world?
Asia’s emergence on the global stage makes it imperative for the international Jewish community to pursue mutual interests and concerns with Asian nations and build upon them to ensure the well-being of the Jewish people and the State of Israel.
As the United States has announced its “pivot” or “rebalance” to Asia, Israel, too, has shifted her attention away from Europe and towards the East. Asia represents about one-third of the world’s GDP. China has emerged as an economic rival to the United States, followed by India and Japan. The economies of the 21 member countries of APEC (Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation), home to approximately 2.8 billion people, represent about 57% of the world GDP and 47% of world trade.
Along with economic clout comes political power. Asian nations—China and India in particular—are seeking to expand their foreign policy role not only in the region, but in the world. China has a vested interest in seeing stability where it has important investments, including the Middle East. India—long engaged with Israel on a number of fronts, including intelligence and defense—has, under the new BJP government, become more open about the relationship.
Israel is attractive to Asian countries because of its reputation as the “start-up” nation, with cutting edge developments in agriculture, water, bio-technology, hi-tech innovation, cyber security, and defense. And Israeli President Reuven Rivlin has said that “as a state which seeks new markets for trade, the connection with Asia is more important than ever to Israel.”
China-Israel bilateral trade grew from an initial $50 million in 1992 to over $10 billion in 2014. China is Israel’s third largest trading partner, and largest in Asia. India-Israel bilateral trade grew from $250 million in 1992 to over $5 billion in 2014. Additionally, India’s annual purchases from Israel of goods and services for defense amounts to some $1 billion a year. India is Israel’s single largest defense customer, with over 50% of Israeli defense exports going there. Israel’s war with Hamas in the summer of 2014 showcased her Iron Dome defense system, an attractive defense option considered by South Korea and others, which fear attacks from unfriendly neighbors.
On the defense front, too, the scourge of Islamist terrorism that targets Israel, the wider Middle East, and the West also threatens Asia, as evidenced by the rising numbers of Asian recruits to ISIS, as well as ISIS’s execution of two Japanese citizens in January. That makes Israel’s intelligence and security expertise much sought after.
Quite aside from these economic and Israel-related factors, it is important to note that Asia has no history of antisemitism. While attitudes towards Jews are sometimes distorted by lack of knowledge of and contact with Jewish people, Asians tend, if anything, to be philo-Semitic. Any Jew who has spent time in Asia has heard Jews described as talented businesspeople, very powerful, and influential in world affairs. Jews are used to viewing such attitudes as antisemitic, but in Asia they are most often intended as complimentary, positive attributes to be emulated. Many Asians look to Jews, and to Israel, as sources of innovation and knowledge. Cultural and educational exchanges are increasing, and Jewish studies departments are cropping up in China and elsewhere.
At AJC’s unique Asia Pacific Institute, we are positioned to reinforce these trends, strengthen relationships with opinion leaders and decision-makers, and form key alliances with leaders and relevant organizations throughout the region.
Shira Loewenberg is director of AJC’s Asia Pacific Institute, headquartered in New York and with staff in Washington, D.C., India, Japan, and Hong Kong.
