Jul 03,2017 Open Forum

Japan’s Feelings of Marginalization in Spring 2017 and the US Factor

At this time of extraordinary flux, for some, Japan looms as an embodiment of stability and sound realist judgment. For others, it remains mired in the post-Cold War trap: stagnation without serious reform, revisionist obsessions without moves toward genuine reconciliation, and insularity without timely internationalization. In this article, I avoid these extremes to concentrate on […]

Gilbert Rozman
Abe-Trump summit , BRI , Moon-Trump summit , TPP , Trump-Xi Summit , US-Japan alliance
Jul 03,2017 Open Forum

Washington Insights (Vol. 5, No. 3)

In May and June, challenges mounted for observers of foreign relations in the Asia-Pacific region. Donald Trump kept throwing US policy into question. Clashing views of the Belt and Road forum left some anticipating Chinese leadership in regionalism and globalism, while others saw the forum as making little concrete progress. If the options for Japan […]

Editorial Staff
BRI , Donald Trump , G2 , TPP , US-Japan alliance , US-ROK alliance
Mar 27,2017 Open Forum

Recent Views in Japan Concerning Sino-Russian Relations

How Japanese officials, media, and academics interpret the state of the relationship between China and Russia matters for Japan’s diplomacy with both countries and its foreign policy more generally, including with the United States. If they see a strong bond verging on an alliance with little chance of weakening, then Tokyo must accept that it […]

Yoko Hirose
8-point economic cooperation plan , Abe Shinzo , Arms sales , Balance of power , BRICS , energy , G7 , India , Kuril Islands , media
Mar 23,2017 Country Reports

Country Report: South Korea (March 2017)

In the first months of 2017, the cloud of impeachment hung heavily over South Korea’s foreign policy, while China’s anger at the THAAD deployment kept growing, and signs of the Trump administration taking a tough stance against North Korea’s increasingly serious threat capacity were growing too. Seoul’s relations with Tokyo were more troubled than before, […]

Editorial Staff (prepared by Han Minjeong)
Arms Race , ASEAN , comfort women , Eurasia Initiative , impeachment , India , Kaesong Industrial Complex , Kim Jong-nam , missile tests , NAPCI
Feb 02,2017 National Commentaries

A Japanese Perspective

On February 11, 2017, after having played golf with Prime Minister Abe Shinzo, President Donald Trump tweeted; "Having a great time hosting Prime Minister Abe in the United States!"1 Together with this comment, he uploaded a picture in which he was playing golf with Abe in Palm Beach, Florida. On the same day, Trump commented […]

Hosoya Yuichi*
Abe Shinzo , cost sharing , Diaoyu islands , liberal internationalism , NATO , Obama , pivot to Asia , rebalance , Senkaku Islands , Territorial Disputes
Jun 13,2014 Country Reports

Country Report: Russia (May 2014)

With Russia’s attention having been primarily focused on the Ukrainian crisis in the past months, the coverage of Asia in Russian media and academic reports has been even sparser than usual. Not surprisingly, much of the writing on Asia is framed in the context of the Ukrainian crisis. Putin’s recent visit to China and the […]

Editorial Staff (with the assistance of Olga Puzanova)
debt forgiveness , Gas deal , sanctions regime , Turkmenistan , Ukraine , US-Japan alliance