Published: December 5, 2025 / Updated undefined ago
Partners in resilience: How Japan and the world are redefining economic security
When a global shortage of semiconductors left car buyers waiting months for vehicles and retailers scrambling for appliances, a once-abstract phrase—economic security—became suddenly tangible. The Covid pandemic exposed how deeply modern economies depend on complex, fragile supply chains. It also taught governments a hard truth: economic strength and national security are inseparable.
Japan was among the first nations to treat this connection as a matter of policy. In 2021, it appointed the world’s first Cabinet-level minister for economic security. The following year, it passed the Economic Security Promotion Act, a sweeping framework to safeguard critical technologies, strengthen supply chains, and protect infrastructure from strategic vulnerabilities.
Other major economies soon followed: Britain with its new trade and economic security portfolio; the European Union with its forthcoming economic security doctrine. But Japan was the pioneer, embedding the concept into its policymaking and diplomacy.
For Justin Bassi, executive director of the Australian Strategic Policy Institute, this shift represents a broader global awakening. “Economics and security were always—or tended to be—separated,” he says. “You had departments of finance or commerce on one side, and national security agencies on the other. What’s changed is that the two are now inseparable.”
Japan’s strategy is built on two complementary goals: “strategic autonomy”—reducing critical vulnerabilities; and “strategic indispensability”—ensuring Japan contributes technologies and materials vital to its partners. The approach recognizes that resilience cannot come from isolation; it must be built through collaboration among trusted, like-minded nations.
That philosophy will take center stage this winter during the Economic Security Global Forum Weeks (GFW), a three-month series of over 25 events linking policymakers, academics, and corporate leaders. The centerpiece, the Tokyo Economic Security Forum on December 15, 2025, will bring together senior officials and international experts to chart a cooperative path toward a more secure global economy.
“Japan’s approach is grounded in partnership,” says Tatsuji Narita, director-general of the Trade and Economic Security Bureau at Japan’s Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI). “We are strengthening the networks of trust that makes economic security work—among governments, companies, and research institutions that share common values.”
Concrete examples are already visible. Japan is investing in the semiconductor renaissance, supporting domestic-production projects by Rapidus in Hokkaido, Japan Advanced Semiconductor Manufacturing (JASM) in Kumamoto, and Micron in Hiroshima. These initiatives—all of them collaborate with like-minded nations—are diversifying global chip production and making supply chains more robust.
The Japanese government and Japan Organization for Metals and Energy Security (JOGMEC) are also working to secure stable supplies by diversifying sources of critical minerals through resource diplomacy and project-specific grants, investment, and financial support.
Navin Girishankar, president of the Economic Security and Technology Department at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), argues that both governments and private-sector companies need to cooperate across borders to drive innovation in critical sectors and protect against economic threats—from supply-chain shocks and cyberattacks to industrial espionage and leaks of dangerous “dual-use” technologies.
“Rapidity of innovation, commercialization and diffusion—these three things are not possible without allies,” he said. “We absolutely need to train our next generation of American, Japanese, South Korean, and European economic security professionals on the mix of policies and skills that they need to do the job well.”
The challenges ahead are formidable. As global tensions rise and new technologies—from AI to advanced batteries—reshape industry, governments must constantly recalibrate where openness ends, and security begins. In sectors such as electric vehicles, batteries, and solar power, supply chains remain concentrated in just a few countries. Japan aims to change that with policies that ensure its indispensability in cutting-edge technologies such as next-generation solar cells —particularly perovskite technology—and by promoting strengths such as supply stability and cybersecurity.
In May, METI updated its Action Plan on Strengthening Industrial and Technological Foundations for Economic Security. The revised plan adds submarine cables, satellites, and rockets to the roster of technologies deemed critical, while emphasizing the need to fortify entire value chains—including related services and businesses—to safeguard Japan’s autonomy and global indispensability.
The plan also calls for a “Run Faster Strategy” with like-minded nations, targeting fields where competition is fierce and security is at stake: AI, advanced computing, quantum technology, biotech, and space.
At the same time, Tokyo is beefing up its economic intelligence capabilities. A proposed comprehensive think tank on economic security aims to enhance government analysis and policy execution through public-private collaboration. On November 7, 2025, Prime Minister Takaichi directed ministers to consider amendments to the Economic Security Promotion Act and highlighted the think tank initiative, signaling a new era of proactive, security-minded economic policy. “Building resilience is not a solo project,” says Bassi. “It’s about trust—trust between governments, between businesses, and between societies. Japan’s model shows that you can pursue national security and global cooperation at the same time.”
That cooperative approach will be on display at the December 15 Tokyo Economic Security Forum, which will bring together senior government officials, corporate executives, and think tank representatives from a range of countries to share information and insights on the topic.
The disruptions of recent years have made clear that supply chains built solely for efficiency are fragile. By contrast, networks built on shared values—transparency, rule of law, and open markets—are both stable and innovative. In essence, Japan’s strategy seeks to transform vulnerability into opportunity.
As the world enters an age of technological rivalry and shifting alliances, Japan’s pursuit of a robust, reliable, and rules-based economic order offers a roadmap for others. By deepening collaboration among trusted nations, Japan is not just protecting its own interests—it is helping to anchor a more stable global economy.
