October 30,2017 Country Reports

Country Report: Japan (October 2017)

The October issue of Bungei Shunju traced Abe’s trajectory as prime minister. It noted his persistent interest in Japan playing a leading global role, keeping US ties as the foundation of foreign policy while strengthening relations with other countries including China and Russia. In 2014, China was the target, as Abe sought a first meeting with Xi at APEC in Beijing. The tricky war an..

Editorial Staff
BRI , BRICS summit , comfort women , Senkaku Islands , THAAD , UN sanctions
October 26,2017 National Commentaries

A Japanese Perspective

Whether he admits it or not, Prime Minister Abe Shinzo’s debt of gratitude to DPRK chairman Kim Jong-un is far-reaching—regarding Japanese domestic politics, relations with the United States, relations with South Korea, and perhaps even the future of Japan’s Constitution. First, both the timing and results of the 48th Japanese House of Representatives election of October 22 wer..

Glen S. Fukushima
Abe Shinzo , Constitution , Diet , Donald Trump , Komeito , Liberal Democratic Party
October 23,2017 Country Reports

Country Report: China (October 2017)

In the summer of 2017, Chinese analysts continued to evaluate Chinese policy toward North Korea and attempted to understand the Trump administration’s policy toward China and the broader Asia–Pacific. They also evaluated the lessons of Japan’s public diplomacy toward ASEAN and examined worsening China–India and China–South Korea relations. North Korean Nuclear CrisisIn rema..

Danielle F. S. Cohen (assisted by Dong Jiaxin)
AIIB , America First , BRI , Nuclear Suppliers’ Group , THAAD , US-South Korea-Japan trilateralism
October 23,2017 Open Forum

The Eastern Economic Forum September 2017: What to Make of It?

For the third straight year in early September Vladimir Putin traveled to Vladivostok for an international forum with ambitious aspirations. Three objectives stood in the forefront: 1) to spur development of the Russian Far East, thereby solidifying the continued sovereignty by Russia over this distant and sparsely settled frontier; 2) to “integrate” Russia into the Asia-Pacific r..

Gilbert Rozman
Keywords: economic development , security policy
October 23,2017 Open Forum

Japan’s Effort to Boost Ties with China and North Korea in Summer 2017 and its Newfound Realism

This article examines Japan’s diplomatic situation with regards to China and North Korea in the summer of 2017.  Major findings are the following: 1) Japan faced limited options during the North Korean crisis; 2) Japan confronted a drastic intensification of the North Korean crisis, and the government was also concerned about improving Sino-Japanese relations; and 3) the recovery of Abe..

Asano Ryo*
Aegis Ashore , BRI , Senkaku/Diaoyu Islands , THAAD , UN General Assembly
September 29,2017 Country Reports

Country Report: Russia (September 2017)

The summer in Russia saw claims of optimism about Sino-Russian relations without much substance and amid some talk of having to move beyond megaprojects, which appear no longer promising. In the background were growing concerns about how well the EEU and China fit together or instead become a conduit for bypassing the customs agents in Russia. There was scant sign of any other path for the ..

Editorial Staff (with the assistance of Olga Puzanova)
BRICS , Eurasianism , G20 , Moscow-Kazan , Power of Siberia , SCO , Silk Road , SREB
September 11,2017 Open Forum

Keeping Northeast Asia “Abnormal”: Origins of the Liberal International Order in Northeast Asia and the New Cold War

Northeast Asia is at a crossroads. One road leads to continued economic growth, regional integration, and globalization, while the other leads to trade-wars, territorial disputes, and an arms race undergirded by resurgent nationalism. If history and geopolitics are our guide, the latter road will be taken. The region is riven by historical animosities, ideological tensions, and territorial di..

Hahm Chaibong*
abnormal states , Cold War , Peace Constitution , Thucydides trap , Yoshida Doctrine
September 05,2017 National Commentaries

A US Perspective

Polarization is a state of international relations familiar from the Cold War era. Even through there was an early non-aligned movement and some states insisted on their strategic autonomy, the process of polarization continued. China spent almost a decade denouncing both camps before it reversed its position and joined one of them. Is polarization reviving some three decades after the end of..

Gilbert Rozman
ARF , Donald Trump , THAAD , TPP
September 05,2017 National Commentaries

A Japanese Perspective

With no end in sight for North Korea to back down from its hardline military stance, and continued worries about Chinese aggression in the region, there is no shortage of concerns that countries across the Asia-Pacific share. The challenge, however, is not identifying the common threats facing the world’s most populous region, or even coming up with potential solutions that could ensure..

Shihoko Goto
Abe Shinzo , AIIB , Pax Americana , TPP
August 30,2017 Country Reports

Country Report: Japan (August 2017)

Trump’s shadow hung heavily over summer developments in East Asia, as covered in Japan’s media. There was talk of US isolation, retreat in leadership, and failure in managing North Korea. Yomiuri on July 31 cited press accounts abroad without any heartening news for the Japanese public; explanations ranged beyond Trump to the broader US society—inequality, cultural despondency,..

Editorial Staff
ARF , comfort women , Donald Trump , history war , Kono Taro , Senkaku Islands , South China Sea