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November 13, 2009
Essential Documents
The status of the relationship between Japan and the United States.
See more in International Peace and Security, Diplomacy
November 12, 2009
Op-Ed
Washington Post
President Obama's trip to Asia offers an opportunity for the United States to reshape its relationship with Japan in the face of "historic" political change, writes Sheila Smith.
See more in Elections, Diplomacy
November/December 2009
Foreign Affairs Article — Summary
The DPJ's rise to power is a historic opportunity for Japan to revise the constitution, loosen the bureaucracy’s grip on policymaking, redistribute income, and improve relations with the rest of Asia. But the road will be long and tortuous.
September 1994
Essential Documents
Plan
See more in China, South Korea, Russian Fed., Natural Resources Management
September 17, 2009
Podcast
CFR's Japan expert Sheila Smith says U.S.-Japan relations remain important for both governments, but the issue of realigning U.S. military forces in Japan will continue to be a difficult challenge.
September 6, 2009
Op-Ed
Honolulu Advertiser
Sheila A. Smith argues that Japan's foreign policy stance under the new Democratic Party of Japan leadership now tops the list of concerns in the United States and elsewhere.
See more in U.S. Strategy and Politics
September 14, 2009
Op-Ed
Newsweek
Sheila A. Smith says that arguments portraying the new, leading Democratic Party of Japan as inexperienced are overstatements.
August 30, 2009
Expert Brief
Electoral politics in Japan have been upended with the defeat of the long-governing Liberal Democratic Party. CFR's Sheila Smith says the rise of the Democratic Party of Japan could test the U.S.-Japan alliance and advises U.S. policymakers to focus on economic and energy-related cooperation.
See more in Elections
August 30, 2009
Must Read
Mary Kissel writes that the reform agenda of the opposition DPJ party and its leader, Yukio Hatoyama, should not be carried out at the expense of a strong alliance with the United States.
See more in Elections, U.S. Strategy and Politics
August 29, 2009
Must Read
Tobias Harris explains how Ichirio Ozawa, former Democratic Party of Japan president, is behind the rise of the recently victorious opposition party.
See more in Elections
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Identifying international threats and acting on them may be the most difficult job for U.S. policymakers. This report
provides an actionable road map for managing international threats before they erupt into crises and makes a strong case that preventive action is not a luxury but a necessity.
For more than a decade, the United States has mostly watched from the sidelines as Asian countries organize themselves into an alphabet soup of new multilateral groups. In this report, the authors review the relationship between pan-Asian and trans-Pacific institutions and suggest policy guidelines for a new U.S. approach to this new Asian landscape.
Complete list of Council Special Reports
Start-Up Nation addresses the trillion-dollar question: How is it that Israel—a country of 7.1 million, only sixty years old, surrounded by enemies— produces more start-up companies than large, peaceful, and stable nations like Japan, China, India, Korea, Canada, and the UK? With the insights of geopolitical experts and investors, the authors examine this nation’s adversity-driven culture to answer this question and offer prescriptions for a global economy on the rebound.
In Forces of Fortune, Vali Nasr presents a paradigm-changing revelation that will transform the understanding of the Muslim world at large. He reveals that there is a vital but unseen rising force in the Islamic world—a new business-minded middle class—that is building a vibrant new Muslim world economy and that holds the key to winning the cold war against Iran and extremists.
In Cuba: What Everyone Needs to Know, Julia E. Sweig presents a remarkably accessible portrait of Cuba's unique place on the world stage over the past fifty years, including its internal politics, its often fraught relationship with the United States, and its shifting relationship with the global community.
Complete list of CFR Books
Adjunct Senior Fellow for International Economics
Adjunct Senior Fellow for Asia Studies
C.V. Starr Senior Fellow and Director for Asia Studies
Senior Fellow for East, Central, and South Asia
Senior Fellow for Japan Studies
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