The New Normal in Sino-Japanese Relations: Assessing Abe’s Domestic Political Resources and Their Implications for Bilateral Ties

The Abe cabinet enjoys rich tangible political resources particularly in the aftermath of the overwhelming victory in the Upper House election in July 2016. However, Abe is also constrained by the less visible intangible uncertainties of his intangible political resources. From the perspective of Japanese internal dynamics, Sino-Japanese relations tend to be on a track of new normal of continued tension with low intensity and sustained dialogue of low quality.