Japan
Japanese whaling is down but not out
Even before the coronavirus pandemic began to dominate the news, and as Australia’s bush fires took most of the media oxygen, this past summer was an unusually quiet period in the…
Coping with Covid-19 as the Tokyo Olympics loom
The 2020 Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics were meant to be a welcome stimulus for the Japanese economy, and an opportunity to showcase Tokyo as a vibrant, “must visit” global city…
Japan: Article 9 conundrum rears its head again
The last day in September in 2021 will mark the end of the current term for Abe Shinzo as President of the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP), and Prime Minister of Japan.
Due to LDP…
China-Japan-US triangle: Abe’s balancing act
The legacy for Japanese Prime Minister Abe Shinzo will be defined by how skilfully he navigates fluid geostrategic and geo-economic variables in the US-Japan-China triangle, at a…
Japan–South Korea tensions show little sign of easing
2019 saw a rapid deterioration of Japan–South Korea relations on several fronts. In a culmination of the reoccurring spats over nationalist issues such as reparations for Korean…
Japan should – like other countries – build and operate hospital ships
A curious anomaly in Japan is that official hospital ships have not been built or used since the end of the Second World War. This is despite the fact that Japan has regular…
Tokyo Olympics are a chance for diplomatic reset with North Korea
Six months ahead of the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, Japan–North Korea relations remain strained. Since September 2018, the Olympic organising committee withheld North Korea’s request to…
Carlos Ghosn – from rock-star CEO to international fugitive
Carlos Ghosn’s fall from grace is one of the most amazing recent episodes in international corporate life.
It seems just like yesterday that Carlos Ghosn was the “rock-star…
Japan has struck low in climate ambition
Japanese Prime Minister Abe Shinzo has repeatedly pledged that his country would lead global efforts to address climate change. Increasingly, however, Japan is facing scrutiny…
Asia’s shameful gender discrimination
The annual release of the World Economic Forum’s Global Gender Gap Report is always a moment of great shame for Asia’s leading economies. The relative gaps between Asian women and…