Japan Memo

Yuka Koshino is joined by Dr Suzuki Kazuto, professor of science and technology policy at the Graduate School of Public Policy at the University of Tokyo and senior fellow at the Asia Pacific Initiative, and Dr Bleddyn Bowen, lecturer in International Relations at the University of Leicester.Bleddyn and Kazuto draw from their deep government and academic experience in European and Japanese space policy to shed light on Japan’s role in this increasingly critical and complex domain.Topics discussed include:The uniqueness of space as an emerging strategic domain and its geo-political implicationsThe history, drivers and trajectory of Japan’s space policyAssessing Japan’s space capabilities and placing them in an international contextMultilateral cooperation in space and headwinds to Japan’s progressThe following literature is recommended by our guests for a deeper understanding of the topics discussed:‘The EU–Japan Partnership in the Shadow of China: The Crisis of Liberalism’ by Axel Berkofsky, Christopher W. Hughes, Paul Midford, Marie Söderberg‘NASA in the World’ by John Krige‘In Defense of Japan: From the Market to the Military in Space Policy’ by Saadia M. Pekkanen and Paul Kallender-UmezuWe hope you enjoy the episode and please follow, rate, and subscribe to Japan Memo on the podcast platform of your choice.Date of Recording: 1 March 2022Japan Memo is recorded and produced at the IISS in London. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode of Japan Memo, Robert Ward and Yuka Koshino are joined by Dr Michael Green, senior vice president for Asia, Japan Chair, and Henry A. Kissinger Chair at the Center for Strategic and International Studies and director of Asian Studies at the Edmund A. Walsh School of Foreign Service at Georgetown University. He also served on the National Security Council from 2001 to 2005, first as Director for Asian Affairs with responsibility for Japan, Korea, Australia, and New Zealand, and then as Special Assistant to the President for National Security Affairs and Senior Director for Asia with responsibility for East Asia and South Asia. Mike combines his deep knowledge of Japan and Asia, with his insider expertise in US security and foreign policy to put the US-Japan Alliance in today’s global strategic context. Topics covered include: ·        Alignments and divergences between the US and Japan’s strategic goals ·        US economic statecraft in Asia under the Biden Administration  ·        Diversifying regional security threats and upcoming revisions to Japan’s National Security Strategy ·        US – Japan cooperation in minilateral and multilateral frameworks in the Indo-Pacific We hope you enjoy the episode and please follow, rate, and subscribe to Japan Memo on the podcast platform of your choice.Date of Recording: 31 January 2022Japan Memo is recorded and produced at the IISS in London. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In episode 6 of Japan Memo, Robert Ward and Yuka Koshino are joined by Dr Sheila Smith, senior fellow for Asia-Pacific studies at the Council on Foreign Relations (CFR) and Peter Landers, Tokyo bureau chief at The Wall Street Journal. Sheila and Peter draw upon their expertise and on-the-ground insights to examine the implications of the 31st October 2021 general election. Topics discussed include: ·        Election results and changes in Japanese politics ·        Internal Liberal Democratic Party dynamics·        Kishida Cabinet’s policies for Japan’s economy and economic security ·        Investments in defence and the potential to obtain strike capabilities·        New appointments and impact on foreign policyWe hope you enjoy the episode and please follow, rate, and subscribe to Japan Memo on the podcast platform of your choice.Date of Recording: 24 November 2021Japan Memo is recorded and produced at the IISS in London. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In episode five of Japan Memo, Yuka Koshino is joined by the UK’s Ambassador to Japan, Julia Longbottom, to discuss Japan – UK relations. She has been serving as Ambassador to Japan since March 2021 and it is her third posting to Japan. Between 1990 – 1993, she was in Tokyo as the Second Secretary in the Political Section of the British Embassy, then again between 2012 – 2016 as the Deputy Head of Mission. Yuka and Ambassador Longbottom explore the Japan – UK relationship and how it has developed over the past few decades. Their conversation covers:Changes in Japan’s engagement in international affairsGender challenges in Japanese societyUK’s Indo-Pacific ‘tilt’HMS Queen Elizabeth’s visit to Japan and bilateral defence relationsOpportunities for British and Japanese economic relations We hope you enjoy the episode and please follow, rate, and subscribe to Japan Memo on the podcast platform of your choice.Date of Recording: 28 October 2021Japan Memo is recorded and produced at the IISS in London.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Robert Ward and Yuka Koshino are joined by Murakami Yumiko, co-founder and general partner at MPower Partners, an ESG focused venture capital fund and former Head of the OECD Tokyo Centre. Prior to the OECD, she worked at Goldman Sachs in New York and London for approximately 20 years.Drawing upon her vast wealth of experience, Yumiko shares with Robert and Yuka perspectives from the Japanese private sector on topics including:•            Japanese private sector responses to decoupling from China•            Japan’s leadership role in regional trade•            The growing start-up scene•            Demography challenges as opportunities•            Importance of women in leadership positionsWe hope you enjoy the episode and please follow, rate, and subscribe to Japan Memo on the podcast platform of your choice.Date of Recording: 29 September 2021Japan Memo is recorded and produced at the IISS in London. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode, Robert Ward and Yuka Koshino are joined by Dr Sanjaya Baru, a Distinguished Fellow at the United Service Institution of India where he conducts research on India's economic and strategic relations with Asia and the strategic imperatives of Indian economic policy. From 2004–2008, he was media adviser to former prime minister Manmohan Singh and was involved in facilitating early exchanges between India and Japan.Robert, Yuka and Sanjaya discuss the growing strategic relationship between Japan and India and its implications for regional security and the economic environment. Topics discussed include:Historical development of the Japan–India relationshipJapanese investments and infrastructure projects in IndiaJapan’s role in India’s digital connectivity plans Bilateral and quadrilateral security cooperation India’s expectations for the Quad Impact of the US withdrawal from Afghanistan on India’s engagement in the QuadWe hope you enjoy the episode and please follow, rate, and subscribe to Japan Memo on the podcast platform of your choice.Spotify / Apple PodcastsDate of Recording: 25 August 2021Japan Memo is recorded and produced at the IISS in London.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In episode two of Japan Memo, co-hosts Robert Ward and Yuka Koshino are joined by Professor Jimbo Ken, a security and foreign policy expert from the Faculty of Policy Management at Keio University, to discuss the defence and security trends highlighted in Japan’s 2021 Defence White Paper, as well as: •            Japan’s missile defence challenges•            Japan’s investments in new domains (space, cyber, and electromagnetic spectrum)•            The role of the US–Japan Alliance in meeting defence and economic security challenges •            The significance of the United Kingdom’s HMS Queen Elizabeth convoy in the Asia-Pacific •            Japan’s expanding security relations with Southeast Asian statesWe hope you enjoy the episode and please follow, rate and subscribe to Japan Memo on the podcast platform of your choice.Date of recording: 30 July 2021Japan Memo is recorded and produced at the IISS in London.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In episode one of Japan Memo, co-hosts Robert Ward and Yuka Koshino are joined by the Chairman of the IISS Trustees, Bill Emmott. Bill is a writer, consultant, long-time Japan watcher and Chairman of the Japan Society of the United Kingdom. From 1993−2006, he was editor-in-chief of The Economist.  To launch this new IISS podcast series, Robert, Yuka and Bill discuss the key developments in Japan over the past decades. These include societal changes such as Japan’s shifting demography, notably its ageing population; the role of women; ‘Abenomics’ and prospects for economic reform under Prime Minister Suga Yoshihide; and Japan’s response to its rapidly changing security environment. Bill also assesses Japan’s standing in the region and its pandemic response, noting why we must wait until the conclusion of the Olympic and Paralympic Games to determine whether Japan has managed COVID-19 adequately.   We hope you enjoy the episode and please follow, rate and subscribe to Japan Memo on the podcast platform of your choice.  Date of recording: 28 June 2021 Japan Memo is recorded and produced at the IISS in London.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The Japan Memo is a new podcast series that unpacks why Japan matters in today’s regional and global geopolitical landscape. In each episode, the co-hosts, Robert Ward and Yuka Koshino of the International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS) Japan Chair Programme, will bring in strategists, experts and practitioners from around the world to examine how Japan is using its diplomatic, economic and military tools to achieve its strategic goals, and what lessons it offers to other countries. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.