Japan
Japan’s nuclear identity and the complicated endgame
Book Review: Akimoto Daisuke, Japan’s Nuclear Identity and its Implications for Nuclear Abolition (Palgrave Macmillan, 2020)
It has been rare in recent years for the…
The double challenge for Suga
The flame has just been extinguished for the Tokyo Olympics, a postponed games held under trying circumstances. Japan’s Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga and his team managed the task…
Life in a host city, at home, live-streaming the Olympics
One of the unexpected benefits of studying abroad for an extended period is the new perspective it brings to understanding your own country. Certainly, my first two years of study…
Postcard from Tokyo 2020+1
My university campus sits amid several Olympic venues and the international media centre, down by the ports on Tokyo Bay. From my tenth floor office, I can observe the…
Olympic glory: Tokyo’s success is a win for Beijing
As the excitement of Euro 2020 fades into the football world’s collective memory, another international sporting event rapidly approaches. The Tokyo Olympics, after being in doubt…
Economic diplomacy: Supply chains, ASEAN wanes, and Japan’s coal dump
Two worlds
When the US and Japan kicked off a bid to take control of the next generation of mobile technology during a summit of their leaders last week, they also pushed the…
Toxic reaction to Japan’s Fukushima water dump
The Netflix documentary “Seaspiracy” caused a stir following its release last month, both for highlighting the serious damage human activities are causing the world’s oceans –…
The Quad (finally) delivers: Can it be sustained?
On 19 March, the leaders of four important democracies of the Indo-Pacific region – the United States, Japan, Australia and India – held (virtually) their first-ever “Quad Summit…
Legalising same-sex marriage in Japan
Last month, a Japanese district court for the first time ruled that not allowing same-sex couples to marry is unconstitutional. The verdict by the Sapporo District Court was a…
The Quad gives a boost to India’s vaccine diplomacy
The most notable takeaway from the first-ever “Quad” leaders meeting involving the US, India, Japan and Australia at the weekend was the agreement on expanding the global vaccine…