North Korea Signals Interest in Building Tokyo Ties
North Korea has been clearly signaling an interest in improving relations with Japan, although there remain far more questions than answers.
Tag Archives: Yoshimasa Hayashi
The Flameout of Fireball Fumio
As he desperately tries to survive the ruling party’s political funds scandal, Prime Minister Fumio Kishida declared that he “will act as a fireball at the forefront of the Liberal Democratic Party and work to restore the trust of the people.” Most analysts, however, see this administration in the midst of a spectacular flameout.
An Epitaph for Kishida’s New Capitalism
The Kishida government has declared that all Japan taxpayers have a “responsibility” to support its policy of dramatically increasing military expenditures, accepting the premise that Japan’s neighbors are likely to launch an armed attack unless deterred from doing so. This marks the effective end of “New Capitalism.”
Japan Reluctantly Throws Lifeline to Sri Lanka
Japan has reluctantly agreed to help Sri Lanka overcome its economic crisis–worse than any other the South Asian island nation has faced in its seventy-year history–in part because of Tokyo’s concerns about Chinese political influence.
Reassessing China’s “Debt Trap Diplomacy” in Africa
China’s “debt trap diplomacy” has been widely denounced by both the West and Japan, and it formed an underpinning theme for the latest edition of the Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD VIII). However, the fact of the matter is that G7 countries, not China, are the largest holders of African debt.
Chinese Debates on Japan’s New Foreign Minister
The appointment of moderate Yoshimasa Hayashi as Japanese foreign minister has elicited a good deal of discussion in the Chinese news media, with voices on both sides of the Taiwan Strait trying to interpret what it means for the region in an era of heightened tensions.
Towards the Formation of the National Democratic Party
A roundup of the most significant news stories from Japan reported on April 25, 2018.
Today in Japan (11.14.17)
A roundup of the most significant news stories from Japan reported on November 14, 2017.
The Slow Rise and Rapid Fall of Koya Nishikawa
After having spent only six months in Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s reshuffled cabinet, Minister of Agriculture Koya Nishikiwa found himself forced to resign over allegations of wrongfully accepting campaign donations from the sugar industry. The decision to step down didn’t come as a surprise, as the critique about the funding scandal had been steadily building, even leading to questioning in the Diet, and eventually leading Prime Minster Abe to make a public defense of his agriculture minister.
Rockin’ the Liberal Democratic Party
There’s a whole lotta shaking going on in Tokyo.
