In the aftermath of United States President Donald Trump’s first official visit to Japan, it is timely to ask what has changed since winning his election 12 months ago. At first glance, as far has Japan is concerned, the answer would appear to be very little. Overall, the friendly atmosphere of the visit suggests that […]
“The four islands of the archipelago should be sunk into the sea by the nuclear bomb of Juche…. Japan is no longer needed to exist near us.” This was the message recently delivered by North Korea’s bizarrely-titled “Korea Asia-Pacific Peace Committee.” Even by the standards of the regime’s bellicose rhetoric, threats of outright […]
Could Abenomics carry on without the man whom it is named after, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe? That is the question confronting investors as they observe the sudden slide in Abe’s poll ratings and the critical backlash from the now emboldened opposition. In the Japanese context, “opposition” does not refer to the minority parties […]
“I M Fired” As time passes, the meaning of historical events can change dramatically. Such is the case with the Asian Financial Crisis which kicked off twenty years ago, in July 1997, and unleashed a chain reaction of economic and social mayhem across the region. At the time, it seemed to herald the end […]
“I’d really like to do Silence right now… it’s been on my mind since 1990… it’s going to be tricky to deal with the persecution, to show it was for self-protection, and how it leads to foreign ideas being transformed in Japan.” (From a 2002 interview with Martin Scorsese, quoted in Scorsese on Scorsese) […]
