TOKYO— Caroline Kennedy's new job as Washington's s ambassador to Japan has already thrust her into the middle of growing geopolitical tensions in East Asia, less than two weeks after her arrival.
The daughter of the late President John F. Kennedy came to Japan with the profile of a superstar, but with little experience in foreign policy and no specific ties to her host country. Rather than easing into her new role, the 56-year-old lawyer, author and mother of three has found herself on the spot, delivering a stern message to China, whose growing dominance in East Asia challenges the U.S.'s own regional strategy.
"Unilateral actions like those taken by China…constitute an attempt to change the status quo in the East China Sea," the ambassador said in her first policy speech Wednesday, after Beijing ratcheted up its territorial dispute with Tokyo by unveiling a new air-defense zone that overlaps with Japan's. "This only serves to increase tensions in the region."
Ms. Kennedy has a lot to prove on her diplomatic skills to foreign-policy experts, some of whom questioned her qualifications when her name first surfaced as President Barack Obama's choice for the Japan job earlier this year. Still, Wednesday's speech was received enthusiastically by Japanese and American business leaders and officials who filled a cavernous Tokyo ballroom. After her speech, Ichiro Fujisaki, a former Japanese ambassador to Washington, described her arrival as "a Thanksgiving gift and a Christmas gift coming together. It's a great gift to Japan from the U.S. government."
Such enthusiasm is apparent across the nation, where President Kennedy's popularity endures. Japanese reporters staked out spots at the airport even before she left New York on Nov. 14. When she took a carriage ride to deliver her credentials to Emperor Akihito last week, an estimated 5,000 people lined up along her route. The Japanese media are eagerly reporting the details of her daily activities, with television hosts weaving in comments about her outfits and her family history.
After spending her first week in Tokyo visiting top officials and greeting U.S. troops at local bases, Ms. Kennedy took a two-day tour to Tohuku, Japan's northeastern region where many residents are still suffering from the aftermath of the earthquake and tsunami in 2011.
With her husband Ed Schlossberg, she sat down with elementary-school students to try her hand at calligraphy. At temporary housing for displaced residents, Ms. Kennedy listened to the stories of elderly women who have found solace in their knitting group.
At every stop, she was met by welcoming crowds and a throng of reporters. "She just arrived in Japan and she must be really busy," said Chie Sugano, a 44-year-old resident of Rikuzentakata, a coastal town that lost 1,700 people to the disaster. "Still, she came all the way up here to show that she cares." With three friends from her hula-dancing group, Ms. Sugano waited in the cold for nearly two hours to have a glimpse of Ms. Kennedy as she visited a memorial site. As the ambassador waved at them from her departing car, the women shouted in unison, "Thank you!"
The trip wasn't without complications. She canceled her last stop in Tohoku—a meeting with a prefectural governor and an exchange with students—with her staffers just citing "unavoidable circumstances." Ms. Kennedy, known to be a private person, at times appeared shy or nervous. But such characteristics may not work against her in Japan where people describe her as "gentle."
Wednesday's speech was the first opportunity for the new ambassador to demonstrate her ability as a diplomat. It came a day after the U.S. flew a pair of B-52 bombers over a group of disputed islands in the East China Sea in defiance of China's announcement of its air-defense zone.
Ms. Kennedy spent a large chunk of her speech discussing security and the importance of the U.S.-Japan alliance. She also talked about her visit last week to a U.S. air base where Japan's Air Self-Defense Force now has its new air-defense command. "Throughout the day, I was impressed by how closely the American and Japanese military are working together," she said. "This mutual respect and close communication are vital to our strategic partnership."