Book launchTuesday 26 April 2016
6:00pm – 7:00pm
Japan, Russia and their Territorial Dispute: The Northern Delusion
Drinks reception from 7:00pm
13/14 Cornwall Terrace, Outer Circle (entrance facing Regent's Park), London NW1 4QP
Organised by the Daiwa Anglo-Japanese Foundation
By
Published by Routledge
The territorial dispute between Japan and Russia over the Northern Territories/Southern Kurils has been an enduring obstacle to closer relations between the two powers. Despite the passage of more than seven decades, within Japan there remains a resilience of belief that the four islands will eventually be returned.
Dr James Brown offers an account of why Tokyo believes it still has a chance of securing the return of the islands. He will also provide a summary of the Abe administration’s latest efforts to secure this goal, including the Japanese prime minister’s plans to meet with President Putin in Sochi in May. The overall emphasis, however, will be on outlining how this issue is viewed within Russia and explaining why, despite Tokyo’s best efforts, there is no possibility of sovereignty over all four islands being restored to Japan. Japanese decision makers must think deeply about how to balance their principled commitment not to compromise on territorial issues with more pragmatic considerations of energy security and how to contain the rise of Chinese power.
About the contributors
Dr James D. J. Brown
Dr James D.J. Brown is Associate Professor in Political Science at Temple University, Japan Campus. He is also a former Daiwa Scholar, having received a Daiwa Scholarship in 2011. In addition to an undergraduate degree from the University of York, he has Masters degrees from the universities of Edinburgh and Aberdeen, a postgraduate diploma in Russian from the University of Glasgow, and a PhD in International Relations from the University of Aberdeen. His main areas of expertise are Russian-Japanese relations and international energy politics. His research has previously been published in the following academic journals: International Politics,Politics, Asia Policy, Post-Soviet Affairs, Problems of Post-Communism, Europe-Asia Studies, and The Asia Pacific Journal: Japan Focus.