Japan 101 2020 offered a 3-part series to provide a unique insight into the US-Japan relationship. Featuring speakers with firsthand knowledge of Japan – its culture, its people, and its policies—the 2020 series focuses on three areas of interest to U.S. policymakers and their advisors. Designed to increase awareness and understanding, the one-hour sessions offer staff the opportunity to hear from and interact with diverse experts from on and off the Hill.
The 2020 Japan 101 Congressional Briefing Series connected Congressional staff with academic, government, and business leaders with direct experience and expertise on the island nation.
The opening session of the 4th annual Japan 101 Congressional Briefing Series featured Minister Takeshi Komoto, Minister for Economy, Trade, and Industry of the Embassy of Japan, Shihoko Goto, Deputy Director for Geoeconomics, Senior Associate for Northeast Asia at the Wilson Center, and Tami Overby, Senior Director at McLarty Associates and Trustee at the US-Asia Institute. The discussion centered around the history of the U.S.-Japan economic relationship after the Second World War, the growth and commitment that the two nations have made to each other economically throughout the course of the 20th century, and the current challenges this relationship faces in the wake of new international economic crisis and emerging economic policy norms.
The second session featured Dr. Mike Green, Senior Vice President for Asia and Japan Chair at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, Ambassador James Zumwalt, Distinguished Senior Fellow at the Sasakawa Peace Foundation, and Anthony H. Cordesman, Arleigh A. Burke Chair in Strategy at the Center for Strategic and International Studies. The discussion covered the history of US-Japan relations since 1945, challenges facing the alliance today — such as the rise of China, deteriorating Japan-S.Korea relations, and the sudden resignation of Prime Minister Shinzō Abe — as well as policy solutions and strategies that could potentially strengthen the alliance in the coming years.
The third and final session of the 4th Annual Japan 101 Congressional Briefing Series featured Yuki Tatsumi, Senior Fellow and Director of the Japan Program at the Stimson Center, Tobias Harris, Senior Vice President at Teneo, and Emma Chanlett-Avery, Specialist in Asian Affairs at the Congressional Research Service. The discussion covered an overview of the state of internal Japanese politics, a history of Japanese governmental affairs under the Shinzō Abe administration, and the current challenges posed to a Japan under a new Prime Minister. The discussion also addressed the challenges within the U.S.-Japan Alliance and Japan’s relationships throughout Asia — such as the changing status of Japanese relationships with certain regional partners, the implications of a new domestically focused Japan under Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga, and the potential effects that American policy can have on Japanese foreign policy efforts.
Schedule
Session 1 | September 14 | 1:00 — 2:00 pm EDT
State of the Economy: Understanding US-Japan Trade Relations
Minister Takeshi Komoto, Minister for Economy, Trade and Industry, Embassy of Japan
Tami Overby, Senior Director, McLarty Associates, and Trustee, US-Asia Institute
Shihoko Goto, Deputy Director for Geoeconomics and Senior Associate for Northeast Asia, Asia Program, Wilson Center
Session 2 | September 21 | 1:00 — 2:00 pm EDT
Security Matters: The US-Japan Alliance, Indo-Pacific Strategy, and Territorial Conflict
Mike Green, Senior Vice President for Asia and Japan Chair, Center for Strategic and International Studies
Ambassador James Zumwalt, Distinguished Senior Fellow, Sasakawa Peace Foundation
Anthony H. Cordesman, Arleigh A. Burke Chair in Strategy, Center for Strategic and International Studies
Session 3 | October 5 | 1:00 — 2:00 pm EDT
Japan’s Regional Influence: Examining Strategic and Foreign Policy in East and Southeast Asia
Yuki Tatsumi, Senior Fellow and Director of the Japan Program, Stimson Center
Tobias Harris, Senior Vice President, Teneo
Emma Chanlett-Avery, Specialist in Asian Affairs, Congressional Research Service
