Japan

The Prospects for Japanese-Qatari Relations

By Cinzia Miotto and Giorgio Cafiero

Over the past three decades, the tiny, wealthy Gulf emirate of Qatar has become one of Japan’s most important Middle Eastern partners. Driven by Japan’s demand for steady access to hydrocarbon resources from a reliable and stable partner and Qatar’s large-scale projects in preparation for the World Cup in 2022, the energy and construction sectors […]

Impressions from a Trip to Japan

For one week in February, an Atlantic Council team and peers from Washington-based academic institutions and think tanks visited Tokyo, Hiroshima, Saijo, and Miyajima to learn about the culture, traditions, and international policies of Japan. We attended meetings with representatives of government agencies, private companies, and local think tanks. Japan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs sponsored […]

Trump’s ‘Sopranos’ Worldview Would Undo Asian Alliances

By Robert A. Manning

In a series of recent comments—most notably in extensive interviews with the New York Times— Donald Trump, the frontrunner for the Republican presidential nomination, has sketched a worldview and policies toward US allies that could unravel the entire post-World War II order. Among other things, Trump says he would renegotiate all existing trade agreements, and […]

Can Japan Help End the War in Syria?

By Ashish Kumar Sen

Interview with Kota Suechika of Ritsumeikan University in Kyoto, Japan Japan can use its good relationships with various actors in the Syrian civil war to help end the conflict that this month entered its sixth year, according to Kota Suechika, a professor at the College of International Relations at Ritsumeikan University in Kyoto, Japan. Japan’s […]

Japan Looks to Seize Opportunity Created by Iran Nuke Deal

By Ashish Kumar Sen

Interview with Yasuyuki Matsunaga of the Tokyo University of Foreign Studies Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s visit to Tehran this summer will send a strong signal that Japan is ready to ramp up its engagement with Iran, according to Yasuyuki Matsunaga of the Tokyo University of Foreign Studies. Japan, which imports most of its energy, […]

Low Oil Prices: Good News at the Pump, Bad News for the Environment?

By Ashish Kumar Sen

Interview with Ken Koyama, Chief Economist and Managing Director at the Institute of Energy Economics, Japan Low oil prices not only threaten stability in oil-producing states, they can also diminish efforts to develop and embrace clean energy, according to Ken Koyama, Chief Economist and Managing Director at the Institute of Energy Economics, Japan. “It may […]

With the Middle East in Turmoil, Japan Looks to Diversify its Energy Options

By Ashish Kumar Sen

Spurred into action by the instability in the Middle East—its predominant source of crude oil—Japan is actively looking outside the region to diversify its energy options and enhance its own renewable energy production capabilities. Japan imports about eighty percent of its crude oil and around thirty percent of its liquefied natural gas from the Middle […]