With uncertainty afflicting Europe on three fronts – over Brexit, relations with Russia and the future of the transatlantic alliance – it is easy to forget that similar uncertainty plagues other parts of the world, with potentially more immediate and more lethal effects. North Korea’s firing of a missile halfway across the Sea of Japan, at the very time when the Japanese Prime Minister was being hosted by the new US President, offered a salutary case in point. Let no one talk of North Korea as the “hermit kingdom”; Kim Jong-un is looking out and responding to what he observes.

And what he will have observed in recent weeks is the arrival on the scene of a tough-talking but untried US President, and a Japanese Prime Minister, Shinzo Abe, who acted at once, and very personally, to register his country and its concerns on the new President’s global map. The missile launch was North Korea’s “look at me” response.

Donald Trump may have a preference for dealing with other countries, whether in trade or geopolitics, one on one – as perhaps his business career has taught him. But the world is connected in all sorts of ways, and in few places are the regional dynamics as sensitive as in this part of Asia. North Korea’s Kim and Japan’s Abe are contemplating the same question – an imminent, unknown and potentially destabilising change in US foreign policy – and addressing it in their very different ways.

Having spent the past week in Tokyo, I came away with two distinct impressions. The first is the scale – the global scale – of the confusion sown by the unforeseen victory of Donald Trump. This is a new world, where old verities and old ways of doing things may not apply. On the other hand, they may. No one knows. Everyone is seeking clues as to where this US administration might go, desperate to find some sure footing in what feels like shifting sand.

The controversial orders Donald Trump has already issued Show all 9 1 /9 The controversial orders Donald Trump has already issued The controversial orders Donald Trump has already issued Trump and the media White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer takes questions during the daily press briefing Getty Images The controversial orders Donald Trump has already issued Trump and the Trans-Pacific Partnership Union leaders applaud US President Donald Trump for signing an executive order withdrawing the US from the Trans-Pacific Partnership negotiations during a meeting in the Roosevelt Room of the White House in Washington DC. Mr Trump issued a presidential memorandum in January announcing that the US would withdraw from the trade deal Getty The controversial orders Donald Trump has already issued Trump and the Mexico wall A US Border Patrol vehicle sits waiting for illegal immigrants at a fence opening near the US-Mexico border near McAllen, Texas. The number of incoming immigrants has surged ahead of the upcoming Presidential inauguration of Donald Trump, who has pledged to build a wall along the US-Mexico border. A signature campaign promise, Mr Trump outlined his intention to build a border wall on the US-Mexico border days after taking office Getty Images The controversial orders Donald Trump has already issued Trump and abortion US President Donald Trump signs an executive order as Chief of Staff Reince Priebus looks on in the Oval Office of the White House. Mr Trump reinstated a ban on American financial aide being granted to non-governmental organizations that provide abortion counseling, provide abortion referrals, or advocate for abortion access outside of the United States Getty Images The controversial orders Donald Trump has already issued Trump and the Dakota Access pipeline Opponents of the Keystone XL and Dakota Access pipelines hold a rally as they protest US President Donald Trump's executive orders advancing their construction, at Columbus Circle in New York. US President Donald Trump signed executive orders reviving the construction of two controversial oil pipelines, but said the projects would be subject to renegotiation Getty Images The controversial orders Donald Trump has already issued Trump and 'Obamacare' Nancy Pelosi who is the minority leader of the House of Representatives speaks beside House Democrats at an event to protect the Affordable Care Act in Los Angeles, California. US President Donald Trump's effort to make good on his campaign promise to repeal and replace the healthcare law failed when Republicans failed to get enough votes. Mr Trump has promised to revisit the matter Getty Images The controversial orders Donald Trump has already issued Donald Trump and 'sanctuary cities' US President Donald Trump signed an executive order in January threatening to pull funding for so-called "sanctuary cities" if they do not comply with federal immigration law AP The controversial orders Donald Trump has already issued Trump and the travel ban US President Donald Trump has attempted twice to restrict travel into the United States from several predominantly Muslim countries. The first attempt, in February, was met with swift opposition from protesters who flocked to airports around the country. That travel ban was later blocked by the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals. The second ban was blocked by a federal judge a day before it was scheduled to be implemented in mid-March SANDY HUFFAKER/AFP/Getty Images The controversial orders Donald Trump has already issued Trump and climate change US President Donald Trump sought to dismantle several of his predecessor's actions on climate change in March. His order instructed the Environmental Protection Agency to reevaluate the Clean Power Plan, which would cap power plant emissions Shannon Stapleton/Reuters

The other is the degree to which Shinzo Abe has taken what in the staid world of diplomacy looks like quite a risk in order to protect Japan’s interests, and how well – so far – his calculation has paid off. There are parallels with the efforts made by the UK Prime Minister, Theresa May, in the direction of Washington, but significant differences, too.

One big difference concerns domestic opinion. May’s rush to be first to the White House was seen in some British quarters as undignified, confirming only the disparity in the “special relationship”. Controversy continued with May’s ill-judged first response to Trump’s travel ban and the controversy surrounding plans for an early state visit.

Abe has few such worries. The implications of Trump’s victory may be preoccupying Japan’s government and diplomatic circles, but Trump himself attracts nothing like the personal opprobrium he draws in much of Europe. Abe’s ratings anyway depend far more on the economy (which is showing an upturn) than on when, where and how he meets Donald Trump. The uncomplicated view from Tokyo is that it is more about the office than the man.

For Japan, the Abe-Trump talks this past weekend served only to confirm the country’s status as the most important US ally in Asia. The trip to Florida and the golf were a bonus. Then again, Trump’s promises to take a hard line towards China offer another, less openly acknowledged reason for the equanimity, even enthusiasm, with which Japan has accepted President Trump.

Where a comparison with May’s visit is particularly instructive, however, is in the strategic dimension. The UK Prime Minister took advantage of a prior speaking engagement in Philadelphia to make a short detour to Washington. Maybe the visit was intended as part of a longer term, Brexit-related plan, but the calculation looked more short term.

Shinzo Abe’s visit, on the other hand, belonged in a larger context. In fact, it was his third trip to the US in as many months. Just 10 days after Trump’s election, the Japanese Prime Minister defied protocol to make a flying visit to the President-elect in New York. He was rewarded with a warm public handshake and a firm commitment by the President-elect to continue the US guarantee of Japan’s security.

Trump 'fails to use earpiece' during Japanese premier's press conference

In late December, Abe became the first Japanese prime minister to visit Pearl Harbour officially (as opposed to privately), where he commemorated the 75th anniversary of the Japanese attack alongside outgoing President Obama. This marked the symbolic ending of a particular chapter in US-Japan relations that included – for all the close security ties of recent years – the still-resented internment of Japanese Americans. It allowed for something of a fresh start.

On his latest visit this past weekend, Abe was accompanied by his wife, senior ministers and a fleet of advisers. The proceedings dominated Japan’s media and were seen as advancing the new entente. As seen from Japan, though, the visit was not just about bilateral relations; Abe was stepping out on the global scene in a way he had not really done before.

Japan’s Prime Minister enjoys several advantages over other leaders in dealing with Donald Trump. One is the confidence that comes from being the scion of a prominent political family. There is also his experience of high office – he is prime minister for the second time – and his almost unchallenged position at home. His manner has nothing of the supplicant.

But Abe, officials note, is now among the most seasoned figures in the wider world. He has been in office longer than any national leader in the G7, barring Angela Merkel, whose freedom of manoeuvre is circumscribed by Germany’s autumn election. France faces elections in the spring; in every other G7 country – the UK, Italy, Canada and the US – there have been relatively recent changes of power.

The same applies in Asia. Xi Jinping might seem dominant in Beijing, but China is in the throes of preparations for a party congress, with all the jockeying for policies and position that entails. Abe is also unusual in managing to get along reasonably with Russia’s Vladimir Putin.

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Abe thus wields more authority, not just at home, but abroad, than any Japanese leader in recent years – or could do if he chose to exert it. The question is will he, and if so, how?