Dec 10,2020 Country Reports

Country Report: Japan (November 2020)

The late fall of 2020 was eventful for Japanese foreign relations because it meant the start of a new relationship with a US president—this time with a new Japanese prime minister; renewal of diplomacy with China—more intent than before on driving a wedge between Japan and the US; the signing of a broad trade agreement—RCEP […]

Editorial Staff

ASEAN , free and open Indo-Pacific , Hong Kong , RCEP , Senkakus , South China Sea , Tokyo Olympics , TPP , US-China rivalry

Dec 10,2020 Open Forum

Washington Insights, Vol. 8, No. 6

The late fall of 2020 saw attention turn to Joe Biden, including his nominees for policy posts in national security and their thinking on the Indo-Pacific region. He prioritizes rebuilding alliances and partnerships, but some asked what would he seek from these countries. If Biden would not follow Trump’s lead in top-down diplomacy with Kim […]

Editorial Staff

BRI , free and open Indo-Pacific , Korean War , SCO , strategic patience , the Quad , US-China rivalry

Dec 02,2020 Country Reports

Country Report: Russia (November 2020)

Sino-US relations were foremost on Russian observers’ minds in the autumn of 2020, both before and after Joe Biden’s election victory. Anti-Chinese sentiments in the post-Soviet space drew attention, as did China’s troubling discourse about the Arctic and talk of the Arctic-Pacific as a construct—a new way of showcasing Russia’s centrality. India was another focus […]

Editorial Staff (with the assistance of Olga Puzanova)

Arctic Council , free and open Indo-Pacific , Hindu nationalism , Joe Biden , Sinophobia , Tibet , turn to the East , US-China rivalry , Xinjiang

Oct 12,2020 Open Forum

Washington Insights, Vol. 8, No. 5

Leadership change was on peoples’ minds in the late summer and early fall of 2020. What would a Biden administration do differently from Trump in the Indo-Pacific region? How does the departure of Abe Shinzo impact Japan’s foreign policy, given his personalized relations with the leaders in the US, China, Russia, and India as well […]

Editorial Staff

COVID-19 , Donald Trump , free and open Indo-Pacific , Joe Biden , US-China rivalry , Yoshihide Suga

Oct 12,2020 Country Reports

Country Report: Japan (October 2020)

With Abe Shinzo’s decision to resign for health reasons at the end of August, discussion turned quickly to his legacy, including in international relations. One position was that he transformed Japanese politics, hollowing them out for foreign and domestic decision-making. He not only had been obsessed with amending the Constitution, he violated it with impunity, […]

Editorial Staff

"Belt and Road" Initiative , Donald Trump , free and open Indo-Pacific , Joe Biden , Northern Territories , Senkakus , US-China rivalry , Yoshihide Suga

Oct 08,2020 Special Forum

Contemplating US Policy on China and the Indo-Pacific: Some Thoughts regarding a Possible Biden Administration

By most accounts, the last four years have been something of a sea change in US foreign policy. During this time, the US has stepped back from its familiar leadership role in several multilateral initiatives, cast aspersions at global governance efforts, flirted with dictators and authoritarian regimes more openly and brazenly than ever in the […]

Amanda Trea Phua , Liow Joseph Chinyong*

COVID-19 , Donald Trump , free and open Indo-Pacific , Hong Kong , Joe Biden , Taiwan , US-China rivalry , Xi Jinping , Xinjiang

Oct 07,2020 Special Forum

Anticipating Japan’s Attitudes toward the US President in 2021

Japan has a very practical view on who the US president is. Throughout the postwar period, Japan’s national interest and security have been protected and advanced by the US-Japan security alliance. Its centrality will remain the same for the foreseeable future-just a reflection of geopolitical realities. Japan has to get along and deal with the […]

Akimoto Satohiro

Donald Trump , free and open Indo-Pacific , Joe Biden , Kamala Harris , Narendra Modi , Quad , US-China rivalry

Oct 07,2020 Special Forum

Sustaining the Momentum in the Indo-Pacific: The US Presidential Elections and Priorities for Indo-US ties

When asked about bipartisan support for the Indo-US relationship, India’s Foreign Minister Dr. S. Jaishankar said, “[T]hink back at the last four American Presidents. Donald Trump, Barack Obama, George W Bush, and Bill Clinton. I’m sure you’d agree with me, you can’t find four people in the world less similar to each other, right, and […]

Shruti Pandalai

Donald Trump , free and open Indo-Pacific , Joe Biden , Kamala Harris , Narendra Modi , Quad , US-China rivalry

Oct 05,2020 Open Forum

Weighed in the Balance: Abe’s Legacy of Searching for Supplementary Security Partners

The lives of Japanese diplomats and security planners were simpler in the old days. During the Cold War, Tokyo’s priority was to monitor the activities of Soviet aircraft and naval vessels in the vicinity of Japan, and to prepare to resist a hypothetical invasion from the north. Matters were made easier by the fact that, […]

James D.J. Brown

Abe Shinzo , Cold War , CPTPP , free and open Indo-Pacific , Quad , Self Defense Forces , Suga Yoshihide , US-China rivalry

Aug 31,2020 National Commentaries

A Japanese Perspective

Japan’s human rights policies, freighted with a historical baggage that South Koreans are well-aware of, are subtle, nuanced – and ultimately, quite frustrating. Governments in Tokyo continue to wrestle with the appropriate weight to give human rights in foreign policy. While recognizing that Japan’s status as a leading industrialized nation demands rhetorical support (at least) […]

Brad Glosserman

"Belt and Road" Initiative , COVID-19 , free and open Indo-Pacific , Hong Kong , Senkaku Islands , Shinzo Abe