NEWS & EVENTS

Annual US-Japan Relations 2020 Yearbook Conference

On Friday, October 30th, the Reischauer Center hosted its annual US-Japan Relations 2020 Yearbook Conference, moderated by SAIS Professor Dr. William Brooks and Columbia University Professor Dr. Fumiko Sasaki. Six students from Dr. William Brooks’ 2020 spring course on US-Japan relations presented their policy-oriented research papers in a two part panel discussion.

Dr. Brooks moderated the first panel on Japan’s security concerns, where SAIS students Zian He, Toshi Nakanishi, and Mariko Togashi presented their individual research on topics related to Abe’s foreign policy, the shifting status of the Self Defense Forces, and Japan’s economic statecraft. Dr. Fumiko Sasaki, a professor at Columbia University School of International and Public Affairs (SIPA) and visiting scholar at the Reischauer Center, moderated the second panel on Japan’s socio-economic concerns with presentations from students Madeline Wiltse, Zhanping Ling, and Sarah Pham. This panel covered the Arctic policies of the US and Japan, Japan’s decreasing demographics, and Japan’s trade deals.

At the end of student presentations, Dr. Brooks and Dr. Sasaki congratulated the students and stressed the importance of continuing to strengthen the US-Japan alliance, even amidst political shifts in domestic and international spheres. Executive Director Neave Denny concluded the event with key takeaways and gave closing remarks