Robert Ward hosts Axel Berkofsky, Associate Professor at the University of Pavia, Professor Hatakeyama Kyoko, Professor of International Relations at University of Niigata Prefecture, and Professor Takenaka Harukata, Professor of Political Science at the National Graduate Institute for Policy Studies.

Robert, Axel, Kyoko and Harukata discuss:

· Review of the Kishida administration’s security and foreign policy

· The Ishiba administration’s foreign policy amid intensifying US-China competition

· The Ishiba administration’s defence policy in Japan’s deteriorating security environment

· The Ishiba administration’s economic security and domestic economic policies

We hope you enjoy the episode and please follow, rate, and subscribe to Japan Memo on your podcast platform of choice. If you have any comments or questions, please contact us at japanchair@iiss.org.

Date recorded: 08 October 2024

Japan Memo is recorded and produced at the IISS in London.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Robert Ward hosts Dr Matsuda Takuya, Adjunct Lecturer at Aoyama Gakuin University, Dr Vida Macikenaite, Assistant Professor at the Graduate School of International Relations of the International University of Japan, and Dr Wrenn Yennie Lindgren, Senior Research Fellow and Head of the Centre for Asian Research at the Norwegian Institute of International Affairs.

Robert, Takuya, Vida and Wrenn discuss: 

• The recent development of Japan’s relationship with the Nordic and Baltic states
• Japan’s security cooperation with the Nordic and Baltic states from defense equipment to cyber security
• The Nordic and Baltic approach to authoritarian powers, including their eyes on the potential cooperation between Russia and China in the High North
• The similarities and differences in the security architecture of the Euro-Atlantic and the Indo-Pacific regions

We hope you enjoy the episode and please follow, rate, and subscribe to Japan Memo on your podcast platform of choice. If you have any comments or questions, please contact us at japanchair@iiss.org.

Date recorded: 6 September 2024 

Japan Memo is recorded and produced at the IISS in London. 

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Robert Ward hosts Professor Koga Kei, Associate Professor at Nanyang Technological University, Shiozawa Hideyuki, Senior Program Officer at the Sasakawa Peace Foundation, and Euan Graham, Senior Analyst at the Australian Strategic Policy Institute.

Robert, Kei, Hideyuki and Euan discuss:

• Japan’s strategic approach to the Pacific Island countries
• China’s growing influence in the region
• Australia and its allies’ strategic objectives in the region
• Outlook of Japan and its allies’ approach to the region amid US-China rivalry

The following books are recommended by our guests to gain a clearer picture of the topics discussed:

• Euan Graham, Australia's Security in China's Shadow, (Abingdon: Routledge for the IISS, 2023), 232pp.
• Yamamoto Syūgoro, 日日平安 [Hibi Heian], (Tokyo: Shinchōsha, 1965), 480pp.
• Yamamoto Tsunetomo, translated by William Scott Wilson, 葉隠 [Hagakure: The Book of the Samurai], (Boulder: Shambhala Publications Inc, 2012), 200pp. The original book was written around 1716.
• Koga Kei and Katada Saori, Japan as a Liminal Power: Evolving Grand Strategies from Meiji to Reiwa (coming soon).
• Andrew Oros, Asia's Growing Security Strategies of America's Ageing Allies, Adversaries and Partners (coming soon).

We hope you enjoy the episode and please follow, rate, and subscribe to Japan Memo on your podcast platform of choice. If you have any comments or questions, please contact us at japanchair@iiss.org.

Date recorded: 31 July 2024

Japan Memo is recorded and produced at the IISS in London.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.