Monday 22 March – Friday 18 March 2011
Japan under the DPJ Government
Daiwa Foundation Japan House
Organised by the Daiwa Anglo-Japanese Foundation
In the run-up to the Lower House elections in August 2009, the Democratic Party of Japan’s foreign policy platform was noted for its clear desire for more engagement in and more cooperation with Japan’s East Asian neighbours. Prime Minister Hatoyama also stressed the need for equal partnership with the United States. To complicate matters, however, the DPJ’s coalition partners – the Socialist Democratic Party in particular – have taken a more pacifist line on security matters than the DPJ and could well seek to limit any support the DPJ might otherwise offer US military and United Nations-mandated military operations. Former Deputy Minister for Foreign Affairs, Hitoshi Tanaka, shares his views on the changes in Japan’s foreign policy since the DPJ came to power.
About the contributors
Mr Hitoshi Tanaka
Mr Hitoshi Tanaka is Senior Fellow at the Japan Centre for International Exchange (JCIE), a nongovernmental international affairs organization based in Tokyo. He has also been a Visiting Professor at the Graduate School of Public Policy, University of Tokyo, since April 2006. Prior to joining JCIE in September 2005, he served for three years as Japan’s Deputy Minister for Foreign Affairs, the Ministry’s second highest civil service post, where he was a top advisor to Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi on a broad range of issues including relations with North Korea, China and the United States. From 1990-1993 he served as the Political Minister at the Japanese Embassy in London. His latest publications include ‘The Logic of Strategic Negotiation’ (2009, Kodansha Ltd.), ‘The Power of Diplomacy’ (2009, Nikkei Publishing Inc.) and ‘The Nation and Diplomacy’ (2005 Kodansha Ltd.) in addition to an extensive number of articles which he has contributed to various newspapers and magazines.
Dr John Swenson-Wright
Dr John Swenson-Wright (chair) is Associate Fellow, Asia Programme of Chatham House and Senior Lecturer in Japanese Politics and International Relations at the Faculty of Asian and Middle Eastern Studies (FAMES), University of Cambridge. He specializes in Japanese domestic politics, Japanese foreign and security policy and Cold War history with particular reference to US relations with Japan and the Korean peninsula. His recent publications include ‘Contending with Regional Uncertainty: Japan’s Response to Contemporary East Asian Security Challenges’ (2010), ‘Assassination, Abduction and Normalization: Historical Mythologies and Misrepresentation in Post-War South Korea-Japan Relations’ (2009), ‘Unequal Allies? United States Security and Alliance Policy Toward Japan, 1945-1960’ (2005), and (as editor), ‘The Best Course Available. A personal account of the secret US – Japan Okinawa negotiations’ (2002).