In the period from February 8 to 12 this year, Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., the son of one of the country’s most prominent politicians of the second half of the last century (and also President) Ferdinand Marcos Sr., was on an official visit to Japan. What was the third event of regional significance in…
Japan’s economy does not require a prophet or crystal ball to tell you what lies ahead in its very near future: that is, that Japan has become the ticking time bomb for the world economy. In case you haven’t been able to hear under all the media thunder of doomsday prophesying by so-called “experts” on…
The Senkaku/Diaoyu dispute between Japan and China provides important lessons for Southeast Asian countries dealing with Beijing’s growing assertiveness, particularly in the South China Sea. In the East China Sea, Japan has accumulated much experience, being at the receiving end of China’s salami tactics to undermine its control of the islands. Tokyo, already a long-standing…
Prime Minister of Japan Fumio Kishida commenced 2023 with a tour of G7 countries, having visited France, Italy, the UK, the US and Canada. Holding the Presidency of the US-centric group for this year, Kishida will host its summit in Hiroshima in May. While a lot of his trips focused on preparing ground for the…
On December 12, 2022 in London, during a meeting of the British Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, its head, James Cleverly, said that he was in favor of expanding the number of permanent members of the UN Security Council (UNSC) by including Japan, India, Brazil and Germany. The British diplomat believes that the current world…
On December 16, 2022, Japan’s Cabinet approved amendments to three key national security and defense documents. First, an increase in the military budget is envisaged. The Japanese government has previously announced plans to increase defense spending to 2% of GDP by 2027 (it is currently 1% of GDP). If Japan does so, its defense spending…
