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Robert Ward hosts Professor Takahara Akio, Emeritus Professor of The University of Tokyo, Dr Elizabeth Wishnick, Senior Research Scientist at the Centre for Naval Analyses (CNA) and Dr Catherine Jones, a Lecturer at the University of St Andrews, to explore Japan’s challenges amid growing cooperation between Russia and China. 

 Robert, Akio, Elizabeth and Catherine discuss:   

• The recent development of the Russia-China strategic partnership in the Ukraine war 
• The limitations of the Sino-Russian relationship and the potential overlap of their interests  
• Japan’s security, economy and energy challenges amid growing Sino-Russian aligment 

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

• Takahara Akio and et al., Japan–China Relations in the Modern Era, (Abingdon: Routledge, 2017), 250pp. 
• Takahara Akio and et al., Nicchū kankei 2001-2022 [Japan-China Relations 2001-2022], (Tokyo: The University of Tokyo Press, 2023), 432pp.  
• Charles E. Ziegler, Russia in the Pacific: The Quest for Great Power Recognition, (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2024), 296pp.  
• Gaye Christoffersen, Russia in the Indo-Pacific: New Approaches to Russian Foreign Policy, (Abingdon: Routledge, 2022), 298pp. 
• Endo Shusaku, Chinmoku [Silence], (Tokyo: Shinchosha, 1981), 320pp. 
• Endo Shusaku, The Samurai, (Tokyo: Shinchosha, 1986), 520pp. 

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: 17 February 2025   

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

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Robert Ward hosts Chris Hughes, Professor of International Politics and Japanese Studies at the University of Warwick, Dr Naoko Aoki , Associate Political Scientist at the RAND Corporation, and Joseph Dempsey, Research Associate for Defence and Military Analysis at the IISS.

Robert, Chris, Naoko and Joseph discuss Japan and North Korea:

• Japan’s diplomatic strategy towards North Korea
• North Korea’s strategy for its advancing missile and nuclear capabilities
• The development of Japan’s counterstrike capabilities and the challenges they face
• Implications for Japan of the strategic cooperation between North Korea, China and Russia

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 or visit our website The International Institute for Strategic Studies (iiss.org)

Date recorded: 26 April 2024

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

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Robert Ward hosts Alessio Patalano, Professor of War & Strategy in East Asia at the Department of War Studies, King’s College London, Veerle Nouwens, the Executive Director of IISS-Asia, and Nick Childs, the IISS Senior Fellow for Naval Forces and Maritime Security. 

Robert, Alessio, Veerle, and Nick discuss Japan’s maritime security policy in the Indo-Pacific.

Topics discussed include: 

• Japan’s positioning of maritime security policy in relation to other domains; 
• China’s perspective on Japan’s growing maritime capabilities; 
• Japan’s strategic navigation between different layers of partnerships; 
• The impact of Trump’s possible re-election on Japan’s maritime security policy. 

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: 04 April 2024 

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

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In the second episode of Japan Memo season 4, Robert Ward hosts Higashino Atsuko, a Professor at the Institute of Humanities and Social Sciences at the University of Tsukuba, James Brown, a Professor of political science at Temple University, Japan campus, and Dr Nigel Gould-Davies, the IISS Senior Fellow for Russia and Eurasia. Robert, Atsuko, James and Nigel discuss Japan and the Russia-Ukraine war.

Topics discussed include: 

• Japan’s response to Russia’s aggression against Ukraine over the past two years; 
• Japan's possible military aid to Ukraine amid growing aid fatigue among Western allies; 
• Japan’s unflagging support for post-war rebuilding to Ukraine in the wake of the bilateral reconstruction conference in February 2024; 
• Japan’s defence and energy policy amid rising security and geopolitical tensions with Russia 

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

• Kanji Akagi, Kokusaianzenhoshou ga wakeru gaidobuku, (Japan Association for International Security, 2024), 288 pp. 
• Mazower Mark, Dark Continent: Europe’s Twentieth Century, (Penguin Group, 1999), 512 pp. 
• Muminov Sherzod, Eleven Winters of Discontent: The Siberian Internment and the Making of a New Japan, (Harvard University Press, 2022), 384 pp. 
• Ryunosuke Akutagawa, Rashomon, (KADOKAWA, 1950)  

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

Date of Recording: 1 March 2024 

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

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Robert, Professor Sato, Aaron, and Evan discuss Japan’s relationship with ASEAN.

Topics discussed include: 

• Japan’s shifting diplomatic and economic relationship with ASEAN amid the rapid growth of ASEAN countries; 
• Japan-ASEAN security relationship in the increasingly complicated geopolitical landscape in the region; 
• Japan’s defence policy in ASEAN amid rising competition between the US and China; 
• ASEAN’s policy on navigating the great powers competition in the region. 

The episode's transcript can be found on https://www.iiss.org/podcasts/japan-memo/2024/02/japans-relationship-with-asean/

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

• Wilhelm Vosse (ed.) and Paul Midford (ed.), Japan's new security partnerships: Beyond the security alliance, (Manchester: Manchester University Press, 2018), 264 pp. 
• Sakai Hidekazu (ed.) and Sato Yoichiro (ed.), Re-rising Japan: Its Strategic Power in International Relations, (New York: Peter Lang Publishing, 2018), 264 pp. 
• Danny Orbach, Curse on This Country: The Rebellious Army of Imperial Japan, (New York: Cornell University Press, 2017), 384 pp. 
• Robert Ward and Yuka Koshino, Japan’s Effectiveness as a Geo-Economic Actor: Navigating Great-Power Competition, (London: Routledge, 2022), 168 pp. 
• Gerald L Curtis, The Logic of Japanese Politics: Leaders, Institutions, and the Limits of Change, (New York: Columbia University Press, 1999), 336 pp. 

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

Date of Recording: 31 January 2024 

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

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In the twelfth episode of Japan Memo Season 3, Robert Ward and Yuka Koshino host Professor Taniguchi Tomohiko, a Visiting Professor at Takushoku University's Institute of World Studies and a Senior Fellow at the Alliance of the National Graduate Institute for Policy Studies and former Special Advisor to Prime Minister Abe's Cabinet and also as a Councillor in the Cabinet Secretariat (April 2013 to September 2020), where he contributed to crafting foreign policy speeches for Prime Minister Abe.

Robert, Yuka, and Professor Taniguchi discuss Abe’s Grand Strategy, especially focusing on his landmark speeches.

Topics discussed include:

Role of diplomatic speechwriter under the Abe administration

Former Prime Minister Abe’s grand strategy and diplomatic legacies

Significance of former Prime Minister Abe’s diplomatic speeches

Abe administration’s legacies in Japan’s foreign and defence policies

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

Crown Prince Naruhito, translated by Sir Hugh Cortazzi, The Thames and I: A Memoir by Prince Naruhito of Two Years at Oxford (Folkestone: Renaissance Books Ltd, 2019)

Geoffrey Bownas, Japanese Journeys: Writings and Reflections: Writings and Recollections (Epsom: Global Oriental; Illustrated edition, 2005)

Fukuzawa Yukichi, The Autobiography of Yukichi Fukuzawa (Tokyo: Library of Japan, 2000)

Ian Buruma, A Tokyo Romance (London: Atlantic Books, 2019)

Christopher Ross, Mishima's Sword: Travels in Search of a Samurai Legend (London: Fourth Estate Ltd. 2006)

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: 15 November 2023

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

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In the eleventh episode of Japan Memo Season 3, Robert Ward and Togashi Mariko host Professor Tanaka Koichiro, a professor at the Graduate School of Media and Governance at Keio University, and Dr Hasan Alhasan, Research Fellow for Middle East Policy at the IISS.

Robert, Mariko, Professor Tanaka, and Hasan discuss Japan’s relationship with the Middle East. Topics discussed include:

• Japan’s key strategic interests including energy security in the Middle East.
• Japan’s standpoint and communication strategy regarding the Israel and Hamas conflict.
• Geopolitical and economic motivations of great powers in the Middle East.
• The perspectives of Gulf countries towards great-power geopolitics in the Middle East.
• The outlook for Japan’s relationship with the Middle East.

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

•  Mohammed Jaber Al-Ansari, a prominent Bahraini philosopher and political thinker who is fascinated by the Japanese experience of being able to rise as a global industrial powerhouse.
• Dr Farhad Taghizadeh-Hesary, an associate professor of economics at Tokai University and a vice president and co-founder of the International Society for Energy Transition Studies (ISETS).

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: 09 November 2023

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

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In the tenth episode of Japan Memo Season 3, Robert Ward and Yuka Koshino host Professor Kotani Tetsuo, a professor of global studies at Meikai University and a senior fellow at the Japan Institute of International Affairs; and Dr Lynn Kuok, Shangri-La Dialogue Senior Fellow for Asia-Pacific Security at the IISS. 

Robert, Yuka, Tetsuo, and Lynn discuss Japan’s response towards expanding grey-zone situations in the Indo-Pacific region.

Topics discussed include: 

• The historical background of grey-zone activity and its definition. 
• The tactics and objectives of Chinese grey-zone activity in the East and the South China Seas. 
• Japan’s perspective and policy on Chinese grey-zone coercion in the Indo-Pacific region. 
• The issue facing Japan when dealing with Chinese grey-zone tactics. 
• The future possibilities of grey-zone escalation and the possible measures taken by regional and international organisations. 

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

• Takahashi Sugio, Nippon de Gunji o Kataru To Iu Koto— Gunji Bunseki Nyūmon [Talking about the military in Japan: an introduction to military analysis] (CHUOKORON-SHINSHA, 2023) 

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: 06 October 2023 

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

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In the ninth episode of Japan Memo season 3, Robert Ward and Yuka Koshino host Ambassador Sujan Chinoy, the Director General of the Manohar Parrikar Institute for Defence Studies and Analyses (IDSA) in New Delhi who served as the Indian ambassador to Japan from 2015 to 2018; and Ambassador Masafumi Ishii, a Distinguished Visiting Professor of Gakushuin University who was the Japanese ambassador to Indonesia from 2017 to 2020. 

Robert, Yuka, Ambassador Chinoy and Ambassador Ishii discuss Japan’s relationship with the Global South countries to navigate the complex international security and geo-economic environment amid Russia’s War in Ukraine and the US-China great power competition. The guests provide their insights on the evolving significance of the Global South, Japanese policies towards India and Indonesia, and the opportunities and challenges looking ahead.

Topics discussed include: 

• The growing importance of the Global South in international affairs; 
• Japan’s engagement with ASEAN countries to deal with the Russian and Chinese challenges to rules-based international order; 
• The political motivation of Japan for engaging with India and Indonesia to tackle global security issues; 
• Potential role of Japan as a bridge between the West and the Global South as the chair of this year’s G7; and 
• Speaker perspectives on the opportunities and challenges in the future cooperation between Japan and the Global South. 

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

• Edwin O. Reischauer, Japan, The Story of a Nation, (Vermont: Charles E. Tuttle Co., 1988) 
• Ruth Benedict, The Chrysanthemum and the Sword, (Indianapolis: Houghton Mifflin Co., 1946) 
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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: 24 August 2023 

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

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In the eighth episode of Japan Memo Season 3, Yuka Koshino hosts Ben Schreer, Executive Director at the IISS-Europe and Head of European Security and Defence Programme, and Tsuruoka Michito, Associate Professor at the Faculty of Policy Management in Graduate school of Media and Governance at Keio University, as well as Visiting Fellow at the Australian National University Strategic & Defence Studies Centre (SDSC).

Yuka, Ben, and Michito unpack the 2023 NATO Summit in Vilnius, Lithuania, and the developments around Japan-NATO cooperation and Japan’s responses to Russia’s war in Ukraine.

Topics discussed include:

• Key takeaways from the 2023 NATO Summit and the impact of Prime Minister Kishida’s second attendance at a NATO summit;
• Assessment of the Individually Tailored Partnership Programmes (ITPP) between NATO and Japan for 2023-26, next steps for implementation;
• Implications of Japan’s adoption of NATO standards for defence equipment supply chain;
• NATO’s approach on China and engagement in the Indo-Pacific, including the debates over the potential opening of its liaison office in Tokyo.

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

Tsuruoka Michito, Abe Shinzo Kaikoroku [Abe Shinzo’s Memoir] (Tokyo: Chuokoron-Shinsha, 2023)

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: 19 July 2023

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

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In the seventh episode of Japan Memo Season 3, Robert Ward hosts Sakata Yasuyo, Professor of International Relations at the Kanda University of International Studies; Dr Mireya Solís, Director of the Center for East Asia Policy Studies, Philip Knight Chair in Japan Studies, and a Senior Fellow in the Foreign Policy Program at Brookings; and Dr Chung Min Lee, Senior Fellow at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace and Professor at the Institute of Convergence and Security Affairs, Korea Advanced Institute for Science and Technology. Dr Lee is also the Chairman of the IISS Advisory Council and a IISS Trustee.

Robert, Sakata-sensei, Dr Lee and Dr Solís explore the factors spurring tension and reconciliation in the bilateral Japan-Republic of Korea (ROK) relationship, conventional and new challenges facing their relations, the status of bilateral and trilateral US-Japan-ROK cooperation and offer perspectives on ways forward for sustaining the recent rapprochement.

Topics discussed include:

·        speaker perspectives on the drivers behind the recent bilateral rapprochement;

·        the impact of the Shangri-La Dialogue on bilateral and trilateral US-Japan-ROK relations;

·        areas of alignment between both countries’ Indo-Pacific strategies and potential areas of cooperation;

·        potential for economic, economic security and traditional security cooperation; and

·        speaker perspectives on the sustainability of the relationship and rapprochement.

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

·        Mireya Solis, Japan’s Quiet Leadership: Reshaping the Indo-Pacific (Washington, DC: Brookings Institution, 2023) (Forthcoming)

·        Yoichi Funabashi, The Peninsula Question: A Chronicle of the Second Korean Nuclear Crisis (Washington, DC: Brookings Institute Press, 2007).

·        Kishida Fumio, Kakuheiki no Nai Sekai e – Yūki Aru Heiwakokka no Kokorozashi [Towards a World without Nuclear Weapons: Aspirations of a Courageous and Peaceful Nation] (Tokyo: Nikkei BP, 2020).

·        Edited by Michael Raska, Richard A Bitzinger, The AI Wave in Defence Innovation: Assessing Military Artificial Intelligence Strategies, Capabilities, and Trajectories (London and New York: Routledge, 2023)

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 2023

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

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Robert Ward hosts Professor Suzuki Kazuto, Professor at the Graduate School of Public Policy at the University of Tokyo, and Dr Elli-Katharina Pohlkamp, Director at Agora Strategy Group, to explore Japan’s economic security policy.

Robert, Professor Suzuki and Dr Pohlkamp discuss: 

• Recent developments in Japan’s economic security strategy
• The European perspective on Japan’s economic security policy
• Key differences between Japan and Europe’s economic security approaches
• The future of Japan-China economic relations

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

• Aoyama Michiko, What You Are Looking for Is in the Library, (New York: Doubleday, 2023), 256pp.
• Okamoto Yukio, Japan and the United States: The Journey of a Defeated Nation - A Diplomat’s Memoir by Yukio Okamoto, (Vermont: Tuttle Publishing), 388pp.

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: 30 January 2025 

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

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In this special edition of Japan Memo season 3, Robert Ward, Yuka Koshino and Mariko Togashi, report live on the 20th IISS Shangri-La Dialogue from Singapore.

Robert, Yuka and Mariko interview Bill Emmott, Chair of the IISS Trustees, Dr Valerie Niquet, Senior Research Fellow at the Foundation for Strategic Research and Senior Fellow (non-resident) at the Japan Institute of International Affairs and Dr Jimbo Ken, Professor at the Faculty of Policy Management at Keio University, to gain their insights on key developments in the Dialogue.

They also delve into the significance of this year’s Dialogue taking place amidst Russia’s war on Ukraine and the deepening connections between Western and Indo-Pacific security, accelerating strategic competition between the US and China, and Japan’s increasingly pro-active role in regional and global defence and diplomacy. Topics discussed include:

• Highlights from the Dialogue and how it differs from last year
• An analysis of Japanese Defense Minister Hamada Yasukazu’s speech
• Japan’s views on discussions surrounding economic security during the Dialogue
• Ministerial-level debates on critical and advanced technology
• What the 2023 IISS Shangri-La Dialogue says about Japan’s evolving role in the Indo-Pacific and beyond

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: 4 June 2023

This episode of Japan Memo was recorded and produced in Singapore at the 2023 IISS Shangri-La Dialogue.

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In the fifth episode of Japan Memo season 3, Robert Ward hosts Dr Fukushima Akiko, senior fellow at the Tokyo Foundation for Policy Research and non-resident fellow at the Lowy Institute.

Robert and Dr Fukushima delve into the history of Japan’s engagement with multilateralism and multilateral institutions, examine Japan’s role in multilateralism for the age of the great power competition, particularly its presidency of this year’s G7 summit, and analyse Japan’s strategic thinking towards multilateralism as a means to further enmesh itself across the globe.

Topic discussed include:

• The importance of multilateralism and multilateral institutions to Japan’s national interests after the Second World War;
• the significance of Japan’s 2023 G7 presidency;
• Japan’s ability to work on numerous international security agendas as a non-permanent member of the United Nations Security Council;
• Japan’s deepening ties with NATO and its future with the security alliance; and
• the value-added of Japan’s non-member participation in multilateral forums such as ASEAN.

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

• Fukushima Akiko, ‘A New Logic of Multilateralism on Demand’, in: Hare, P.W., Manfredi-Sánchez, J.L., Weisbrode, K. (eds) The Palgrave Handbook of Diplomatic Reform and Innovation (Cham: Palgrave Macmillan, 2023), 435-454
• John D. Ciorciari and Kiyoteru Tsutsui, The Courteous Power: Japan and Southeast Asia in the Indo-Pacific Era (Ann Arbour: University of Michigan Press, 2021)
• Amy Stanley, Stranger in the Shogun's City: A Japanese Woman and Her World (New York: Scribner, 2020).

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: 3 May 2023

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

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In the fourth episode of Japan Memo season 3, Koshino Yuka hosts Professor Akiyama Nobumasa, Dean of the School of International and Public Policy and Professor at the Graduate School of Law at Hitotsubashi University, and William Alberque, Director of Strategy, Technology and Arms Control at the IISS.

Yuka, Akiyama-sensei and William unpack the dynamics of nuclear issues in the region, examine the Kishida government’s responses to the nuclear security flashpoints surrounding Japan, and analyse Japan’s approaches towards reinvigorating the stalled process of nuclear arms control and disarmament. Topics discussed include:

• The dynamics of nuclear weapons development surrounding Japan;
• The credibility of US extended deterrence, debates on nuclear sharing and nuclear proliferation in the region;
• Japan’s policy tools and approaches to nuclear non-proliferation, arms control and disarmament;
• A ‘grand strategy’ for deterrence, nuclear non-proliferation, arms control and disarmament; and
• The significance of the 2023 Shangri-la Dialogue for addressing nuclear issues in the region.

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

• Mark Fitzpatrick, Asia's Latent Nuclear Powers: Japan, South Korea and Taiwan (London: IISS, 2016).
• Nobumasa Akiyama, ‘Genshi ryoku/ kaku mondai’ [Atomic Power and Nuclear Issue], in Syowa ship kogi [Lectures on History of Showa era], ed. Kiyotada Tsutsui (Tokyo: Chikuma Shobo, 2020), 245-267.
• Haruki Murakami, Underground: The Tokyo Gas Attack and the Japanese Psyche (New York: Vintage International, 2003).
• Shin Godzilla, directed by Hideaki Anno, Shinji Higuchi (Tokyo: Toho, 2016).

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: 11 April 2023

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

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In the third episode of Japan Memo season 3, Mariko Togashi hosts Bill Emmott, Chairman of the IISS Trustees, Chair of the Japan Society UK and an Ushioda Fellow of Tokyo College at the University of Tokyo, and Fenella McGerty, IISS Senior Fellow for Defence Economics.

Mariko, Bill and Fenella analyse the balance between defence spending and other public spending priorities, unpack Prime Minister Kishida’s New Capitalism strategy and its implications for the defence budget increase, offer their views on how Japan could achieve the 2% defence spending target with other competing spending priorities, and examine how the defence budget increase can translate into greater military capabilities.

Topics discussed include:

• The relationship between economic health and defence spending;
• New Capitalism and Japan’s economic growth;
• New Capitalism in achieving the defence budget increase to 2% of GDP;
• What is needed for Japan to translate the defence budget increase into greater military capability; and
• The Japanese defence industry’s role in building greater military capabilities

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

• Christopher W Hughes, ‘Japan’s defence industry,’ in The Economics of the Global Defence Industry, Keith Hartley and Jean Belin, ed. (New York: Routledge, 2019), 396-436.
• Bill Emmott, Japan’s Far More Female Future: Increasing Gender Equality and Reducing Workplace Insecurity Will Make Japan Stronger (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2020).
• Matt Alt, Pure Invention: How Japan Made the Modern World (Massachusetts: Little, Brown and Company, 2021).

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: 13 March 2023

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

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In the second episode of Japan Memo season 3, Yuka Koshino hosts former Japan Air Self-Defense Force (JASDF) Lieutenant General Oue Sadamasa, currently Consulting Senior Fellow at the Institute of Geoeconomics in Tokyo, and Douglas Barrie, IISS Senior Fellow for Military Aerospace.

Yuka, Oue-san and Doug analyse Japan’s current airpower and aerospace capabilities, assess the regional threats around Japan and how its new strategies and the JASDF might address them, offer their insights on opportunities and roadblocks to the landmark Global Combat Air Programme (GCAP), and examine what Japan’s air force and air defence capabilities might look like beyond 2035.

Topics discussed include:

• The security environment surrounding Japan and the imminent threats posed to the JASDF;
• The impact of the three new national-security documents on Japan’s airpower;
• The significance of GCAP and its progress so far;
• The industrial implications, opportunities and headwinds for GCAP to the British, Japanese and Italian defence industries; and
• Japan’s investment in advanced technology and future warfighting capabilities to sustain airpower beyond 2035.

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

• ‘令和4年版防衛白書 2022’ / ‘Defense of Japan 2022’ (Annual White Paper), Ministry of Defense, Japan
• Literature by authors such as Endo Shusaku and Kawabata Yasunari

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: 9 February 2023

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

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In the first episode of Japan Memo season 3, Yuka Koshino, Mariko Togashi and Robert Ward host Professor Kanehara Nobukatsu, Professor at the Faculty of Law at Doshisha University, senior advisor at The Asia Group in Washington DC, and former Assistant Chief Cabinet Secretary to Prime Minister Abe Shinzo from 2012 to 2019.

Yuka, Mariko, Robert and Kanehara-sensei unpack Japan’s three historic new national-security documents, offer their insights on the significance and details of these documents, analyse the impacts of the ensuing shift in Japanese security and defence policy, and delve into the regional and international perspectives of the three new strategies.

Topics discussed include:

• A macro-scale overview of the key strategy shifts in the documents
• Japan’s ability to develop counterstrike capabilities and their implications for deterrence and war-fighting capabilities
• The trajectory of Japan’s civil-military divide
• How to effectively integrate economic security into a broader national defence strategy
• Perspectives from strategic competitors, allies and like-minded countries

The following literature is recommended by our guest to gain a clearer picture of the topics discussed:

• ‘君たち、中国に勝てるのか’/ 岩田清文, 尾上定正, 武居智久, 兼原信克 (‘Can you win against China’ by Kiyofumi Iwata, Oue Sadamasa, Tomohisa Takei and Kanehara Nobukatsu)
• ‘国家安全保障戦略’ (‘National Security Strategy of Japan’ 2022)
• ‘国家防衛戦略’ (‘National Defence Strategy of Japan’ 2022)
• ‘防衛力整備計画’ (‘Defence Programme Guidelines’ 2022)

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: 9 January 2023

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

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In this month’s episode of Japan Memo, Robert Ward and Yuka Koshino are joined by Satoru Mori, Professor at Keio University in Tokyo and a Senior Fellow at the Nakasone Peace Institute (NPI) and Zack Cooper, Senior Fellow at the American Enterprise Institute (AEI).

Robert, Yuka, Satoru and Zack provide US and Japanese perspectives on Taiwan contingency scenarios; their analyses on Taiwan contingency wargames conducted in the US and Japan between 2021-2022; and offer assessments on what the US and Japan can and should do to better prepare for a contingency scenario in peacetime.

Topics discussed include:

• The outcomes of the wargames conducted between 2021-2022
• The challenges and limitations for the US, Japan and their alliance in a Taiwan contingency
• How Japan’s three new strategic documents will consider a Taiwan contingency
• The peacetime contingency preparations that should be undertaken by the US, Japan, and their alliance

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

• ‘Self-respect and Independence of Mind: The Challenge of Yukichi Fukuzawa’ by Shinichi Kitaoka (translated by James M. Vardaman)
• ‘Japan Prepares for Total War’ by Michael Beinart

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: 25 November 2022

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

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In this month’s episode of Japan Memo, Yuka Koshino is joined by Martijn Rasser, Senior Fellow and Director of the Technology and National Security Program at the Center for New American Security, Meia Nouwens, IISS Senior Fellow for Chinese Defence Policy and Military Modernisation, and Mariko Togashi, Matsumoto-Samata Research Fellow for Japanese Security and Defence Policy at the IISS.

Yuka, Martijn, Meia and Mariko provide US, Japanese, Chinese, Taiwanese and European perspectives on their respective geoeconomic landscape and economic security policy; their views towards and preparations for a Taiwan contingency in the context of economic security; and offer their assessment of potential national and multilateral responses to such a contingency.

Topics discussed include:

• The economic security policies of the US, China, Taiwan and Japan
• US, Chinese, and Japanese views on the impact of a Taiwan contingency on economic security
• The global and regional semiconductor landscape and its impact on reactions to tensions in the Taiwan Strait
• A potential sanctions regime against China in a case of Taiwan contingency

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

• ‘Rich Nation, Strong Army’ by Richard J. Samuels
• ‘Middle Kingdom and Empire of the Rising Sun: Sino-Japanese Relations, Past and Present’ by June Teufel Dreyer
• ‘China and Japan: Facing History’ by Ezra Vogel
• ‘自衛隊最高幹部が語る台湾有事’ /岩田 清文 ,武居 智久, 尾上 定正, 兼原 信克 (‘JSDF Top Executives Talk About Taiwan Contingency’ by Iwata Kiyofumi, Takei Tomohisa, Oue Sadamasa and Kanehara Nobukatsu)

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: 10 November 2022

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

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In this episode of Japan Memo, Yuka Koshino and Mariko Togashi host Matsubara Mihoko, chief cybersecurity strategist at NTT Corporation and research associate for Cyber, Space and Future Conflict at the IISS.

Yuka, Mariko and Mihoko-san analyse Japan’s approaches to cybersecurity, notably following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, offer perspectives on Japan’s cyber capabilities and their impact on national security, and give a rundown of the state of cybersecurity at Japan’s commercial level.

Topics discussed include:

• Hybrid warfare in Ukraine and its impact on Japan’s cyber policies
• Japan’s views on China’s increasing technological and cyber capabilities
• Japan’s cyber capabilities and its strengths and weaknesses
• Incorporating cyber into the upcoming defence document revisions
• How cybersecurity fits into Japan’s economic security framework

The following literature is recommended by our guest to gain a clearer picture of the topics discussed:

• “サイバーセキュリティ 組織を脅威から守る戦略・人材・インテリジェンス”, 松原 実穂子 (“Cybersecurity to Protect the Way of Our Digital Life” by Matsubara Mihoko)

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: 4 October 2022

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

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In this episode of Japan Memo, Robert Ward and Yuka Koshino host Professor Takahara Akio, Director of the JICA Ogata Sadako Research Institute for Peace and Development, Professor of Contemporary Chinese Politics at the University of Tokyo, Distinguished Research Fellow at the Japan Forum on International Relations, Senior Adjunct Fellow at the Japan Institute of International Affairs and Senior Researcher at the Tokyo Foundation for Policy Research.

Robert, Yuka, and Takahara-sensei provide a historical overview of the Japan-China diplomatic relationship since its normalisation, analyse the current state of bilateral relations between the two and offer their perspectives on the future of Sino-Japanese ties going forward.

Topics discussed include:

• The key turning points in the last five decades
• Japan and China’s public and government level perceptions of each other
• Potential channels for cooperation between the neighbouring states
• Former Prime Minister Abe Shinzo’s legacy in Japan-China relations
• How Japan effectively manages its inherently contradictory relationship with China

The following literature is recommended by our guest to gain a clearer picture of Japan and Japanese society today:

• Our guest recommends listeners browse through major Japanese newspapers over the course of a week to gain a better sense of the pulse of contemporary Japanese politics and society

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 August 2022

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

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Robert Ward hosts Dr Sheila Smith, Senior Fellow for Asia-Pacific studies at the Council on Foreign Relations (CFR), and Dr Jeffrey Hornung, the Japan Lead for the RAND National Security Research Division.  

Robert, Sheila and Jeffrey discuss:   

• Japan’s strategic landscape under Trump 2.0, including insights for PM Ishiba from Abe’s successful approach 
• Japan’s defence policy challenges under Trump 2.0, including potential US demands for increased financial contributions to the security alliance. 
• The future of minilateral security cooperation in the Indo-Pacific under Trump 2.0, notably QUAD and AUKUS 

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

• Abe Shinzo, Abe Shinzo Kaiko Roku [Abe Shinzo Memoir] (Tokyo: Chuokoron-Shinsha, Inc., 2023), 480pp. 
• Funabashi Yoichi, Shukumei no Ko Volume 1: Abe Shinzou Seiken Kuronikuru [Destiny Child on Abe Shinzo Administration Chronicles Volume 1] (Tokyo: Bungeishunju Ltd., 2024), 560pp. 
• Funabashi Yoichi, Shukumei no Ko Volume 2: Abe Shinzou Seiken Kuronikuru [Destiny Child on Abe Shinzo Administration Chronicles Volume 2] (Tokyo: Bungeishunju Ltd., 2024), 640pp. 
• John W Dower, Embracing Defeat – Japan in the Wake of World War II, (New York: W. W. Norton & Company, 2000), 688pp.  
• Nakae Chomin, A Discourse by Three Drunkards on Government, (Tokyo: Weatherhill Inc., 1992), 144pp.  

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: 4 December 2024   

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In this episode of Japan Memo, Robert Ward and Yuka Koshino host Dr Tsuruoka Michito, Associate Professor at the Faculty of Policy Management at Keio University, as well as Senior Associate Fellow at the Centre for Security, Diplomacy and Strategy (CSDS) at the Brussels School of Governance, and Senior Fellow at the Tokyo Foundation for Policy Research.

Robert, Yuka, and Tsuruoka-sensei unpack the background context of growing Japan-NATO relations, the 2022 Madrid Summit, the implications of deepening Japan-NATO engagement, and opportunities and roadblocks to increased Japan-NATO cooperation.

Topics discussed include:

• Former Prime Minister Abe Shinzo’s legacy for Japan-NATO relations
• The significance of Prime Minister Kishida’s participation in the 2022 Madrid Summit
• Japan and NATO’s expectations on the trajectory of their relationship
• Practical avenues of cooperation for Japan and NATO to engage in
• The role of the US in streamlining Japan-NATO cooperation

The following literature is recommended by our guest to gain a clearer picture of Japan and Japanese society today:

• Our guest recommends tabloid papers or weekly magazines such as “Shukan Bunchun” (週刊文春), “Shukan Shinchou” (週刊新潮), or sports and entertainment tabloids such as “Sankei Sports” (サンケイスポーツ)
• Alternatively, “Variety” TV programmes in the form of morning or evening shows also illuminate Japanese viewpoints on domestic or international issues.

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: 19 July 2022

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

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In this episode of Japan Memo, Robert Ward and Mariko Togashi are joined by Dr Maria Shagina, the IISS Diamond-Brown Research Fellow for Economic Sanctions, Standards and Strategy.

Maria brings her extensive knowledge on international sanctions, economic statecraft, and energy policies to discuss Japan’s sanctions on Russia in response to its aggressions in Ukraine and understand the broader dynamics within Asia. 

Topics discussed include:

• President Zelenskyy’s speech at the 2022 Shangri-La Dialogue.
• Drivers that compelled Japan to impose unprecedently swift and tough sanctions.
• Value added by Japan’s participation in the international sanctions' regime.
• The broader regional implications of the sanctions, in particular, Sino-Russia relations.  
• Balancing effective sanctions with energy security, the challenges of phasing out Russian energy and alternative partners for Japan. 

The following literature is recommended by our guests for a deeper understanding of the topics discussed:

‘Japan’s Effectiveness as a Geo-Economic Actor: Navigating Great-Power Competition’ by Yuka Koshino and Robert Ward

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 2022

Japan Memo is recorded and produced at the IISS in London

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In this episode of Japan Memo, directly preceding the 2022 IISS Shangri-La Dialogue, Robert Ward and Yuka Koshino host Kotani Tetsuo, professor of global studies at Meikai University and senior fellow at the Japan Institute of International Affairs (JIIA), and Dr Ueki Chikako Kawakatsu, professor of international relations at Waseda University’s Graduate School of Asia-Pacific Studies.

Robert, Yuka, Kotani-sensei and Ueki-sensei share their insights on the war in Ukraine’s impact on Asia’s existing security dynamics, Japan and its neighbours’ perceptions of and responses to these shifting dynamics, and invigorated debates in Tokyo surrounding Japan’s defence budget and capabilities. Topics discussed include:

• The effect of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine on Asia’s security
• The Kishida administration’s response to the crisis at home and with partners
• The Shangri-La Dialogue’s potential to foster critical discussions on Indo-Pacific security
• Domestic debates surrounding Japan’s defence budget, capabilities and revisions to its NSS

The following literature is recommended by our guests for a deeper understanding of the topics discussed:

• ‘安全保障を問いなおす : 「九条-安保体制」を越えて’ / 添谷芳秀著  (‘Rethinking Security: Going beyond the “Article 9 Alliance Regime”’ by Yoshihide Soeya)
• ‘East Asian Strategic Review’ by the National Institute for Defense Studies (NIDS)
• ‘戦後日本の安全保障―日米同盟、憲法9条からNSCまで’ / 千々和 泰明 (‘Post-war Japan’s Security: The US-Japan alliance, from Article 9 to the NSC’ by Chijiwa Yasuaki)
• ‘Strategic Annual Report’ by the Japan Institute of International Affairs (JIIA)

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: 26 May 2022

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

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In this month’s episode of Japan Memo, recorded in-person at Arundel House in London, Robert Ward and Mariko Togashi, IISS Research Fellow for Japanese Security and Defence Policy, are joined by Terazawa Tatsuya, Chairman and CEO of The Institute of Energy Economics, Japan (IEEJ).

Robert, Mariko and Terazawa-san offer insights into Japan’s past, present and future energy policies, how they affect Japan’s national security, and the impact of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine on the stability of global and Japanese energy security. Topics discussed include:

• The key vulnerabilities in Japan and the world’s energy mix exposed by the war in Ukraine

• Opportunities and issues surrounding nuclear and renewable energy in Japan

• How Japan can integrate its energy and security policies to achieve its geo-political goals

• The prospects for alternative energies and the benefits of energy partnerships 

The following literature is recommended by our guest for a deeper understanding of the topics discussed:

- ‘Bushido Capitalism: The code to redefine business for a sustainable future’ by Sakurada Kengo

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: 4 May 2022

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

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In this episode of Japan Memo, Yuka Koshino and Robert Ward are joined by Dr Valérie Niquet, senior research fellow at the Foundation for Strategic Research (FRS) in Paris and the Japanese Institute of International Affairs (JIIA) in Tokyo.

Robert, Yuka and Valérie discuss the causes and trends in the recent Franco-Japanese rapprochement, and the implications of increasing overlap in France and Japan’s Indo-Pacific strategies and international outlooks. Topics discussed include:

• The causes for a convergence of French and Japanese Indo-Pacific and international strategies
• Franco-Japanese approaches to minilateralism and multilateralism in the region
• Priority areas of cooperation in maritime security, advanced technology and Africa
• The impact of the war in Ukraine on France – Japan and EU – Japan ties

The following literature is recommended by our guest for a deeper understanding of the topics discussed:

• ‘Line of Advantage: Japan’s Grand Strategy in the Era of Abe Shinzō’ by Dr Michael J. Green
• ‘Le Japon en 100 questions : Un modèle en déclin ?’ (‘Japan in 100 questions: a model in decline?’) by Dr Valérie Niquet

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: 16 March 2022

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

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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 implications
• The history, drivers and trajectory of Japan’s space policy
• Assessing Japan’s space capabilities and placing them in an international context
• Multilateral cooperation in space and headwinds to Japan’s progress

The 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-Umezu

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: 1 March 2022

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

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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 2022

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

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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 policy

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: 24 November 2021

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

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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 affairs
• Gender challenges in Japanese society
• UK’s Indo-Pacific ‘tilt’
• HMS Queen Elizabeth’s visit to Japan and bilateral defence relations
• Opportunities 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 2021

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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 positions

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: 29 September 2021

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

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Robert Ward is joined by Bill Emmott, Chairman of the IISS Trustees, Murano Masashi, a senior fellow with Hudson Institute’s Japan Chair, and Dr Baldauff Nanae, Non-Resident Senior Associate Fellow at the NATO Defense College to discuss Japan and deterrence.

Robert, Bill, Masashi and Nanae discuss:  

·        The strategic definition of deterrence, from what it entails to how it works

·        Nuclear deterrence, including Japan’s strategy amid the nuclear arms race in East Asia

·        Integrated deterrence, including Japan’s efforts to deepen and integrate operations with allies and partners

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 October 2024  

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

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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 relationship
• Japanese investments and infrastructure projects in India
• Japan’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 Quad

We hope you enjoy the episode and please follow, rate, and subscribe to Japan Memo on the podcast platform of your choice.

Spotify / Apple Podcasts

Date of Recording: 25 August 2021



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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 states

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: 30 July 2021

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

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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. 

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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. 

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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 

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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. 

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Robert Ward hosts Richard J Samuels, Ford International Professor of Political Science at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Kotani Ken, Professor at Nihon University in Japan, and Hosaka Sanshiro, Research Fellow at the International Centre for Defence and Security and PhD student at the University of Tartu.  

Robert, Richard, Ken and Sanshiro discuss:  

• The history of Japanese intelligence agencies 
• Japan’s current intelligence capabilities 
• Intelligence threats faced by Japan and the West 
• Outlook of intelligence operations 

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

Tessa Morris-Suzuki, Exodus to North Korea: Shadows from Japan's Cold War, (Lanham, Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, 2007), 302pp. 

John W. Dower, Embracing Defeat: Japan in the Wake of World War II, (New York: W.W. Norton & Company, 2000), 688pp. 

Kotani Ken, 日本インテリジェンス史：旧日本軍から公安、内調、ＮＳＣまで [Nihon Intelligence Shi: Kyu-nihongun Kara Kōan, Naichō, NSC Made], (Tokyo: Chuo Koron Shinsha, 2022), 296pp. 

Michael S. Molasky, 呑めば、都─居酒屋の東京 [Nomeba Miyako – Izakaya No Tokyo], (Tokyo: Chikuma Shobō, 2016), 400pp.  

Richard J. Samuels, Special Duty: A History of the Japanese Intelligence Community, (Ithaca: Cornell University Press, 2019), 384pp. 

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: 21 June 2024  

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

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Robert Ward hosts Iwama Yoko, Professor at Japan's National Graduate Institute for Policy Studies (GRIPS), Guibourg Delamotte, Professor of Political Science at the Japanese Studies Department of the French Institute of Oriental Studies (Inalco), and Dr Alexandra Sakaki, Deputy Head of the Asia Division at the German Institute for International and Security Affairs at Stiftung Wissenschaft and Politik (SWP).  

Robert, Yoko, Guibourg and Alexandra discuss Japan and the EU:  

• EU strategy for cooperation in the Indo-Pacific amid Russia’s war against Ukraine 
• China's growing footprint in Europe and its implications for the EU's Indo-Pacific strategy 
• The development and challenges of enhanced defence cooperation between Japan and the EU 
• Implications for the future of the similarity between Japan’s and the EU’s economic security strategies 

For more information, transcript and background reading, please visit out website IISS Podcast: Japan Memo.

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: 24 May 2024  

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

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In this special edition of Japan Memo Season 5, Robert Ward reports from Singapore on the 22nd IISS Shangri-La Dialogue.

Joining him is Professor Jimbo Ken, Managing Director of the International House of Japan, President of the Asia Pacific Initiative, and Professor at Keio University’s Faculty of Policy Management. They deliver timely and in-depth analysis of this year’s key developments and strategic narratives.

Robert and Professor Jimbo discuss: 

·        Major themes and takeaways from the 2025 Dialogue and how it compares with previous years

·        Key messages from US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth’s speech

·        Regional perspectives on China’s activities and strategic posture

·        Analysis of Japanese Defense Minister Nakatani Gen’s address

·        ASEAN’s evolving role in an increasingly contested regional order

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: 1 June 2025 

This episode of Japan Memo was recorded in Singapore and produced at the IISS in London. 

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

Robert Ward hosts Professor Hosoya Yuichi, Professor of International Politics at Keio University, Professor Yee Kuang Heng, Professor at the Graduate School of Public Policy and Director of the Security Studies Unit at the Institute for Future Initiatives at the University of Tokyo, and Fenella McGerty, the IISS Senior Fellow for defence economics in the Defence and Military Analysis Programme. They discuss Japan-UK relations.  

Robert, Yuichi, Yee Kuang and Fenella discuss:  

• Japan-UK diplomatic alignment, amid the UK’s tilt towards the Indo-Pacific
• Japan-UK defence partnership, including the GCAP, the UK CSG deployment to the Indo-Pacific
• Japan-UK economic cooperation, including the bilateral economic 2+2, the UK accession to the CPTTP

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 May 2025  

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

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