Seminar and Discussion
Wednesday 12th June 2013, 12.30pm to 1.30pm, Room TW2 10.01B, 10th Floor, Tower 2, LSE
Speaker: Dr Mutsumi Hirano
Chair: Professor Ian Nish
With its long-term economic malaise over decades and with a series of short-lived governments in the past several years, Japan’s foreign policy looked somewhat directionless in recent years. Perhaps the Democratic Party raised much expectation, in fact too much of it on almost every front, in tackling economic stagnation and social security reform to political leadership, which unfortunately ended disappointingly, in particular on the foreign policy front, not to mention the Okinawa base issue. The 3/11 Tohoku Earthquake in 2011 made the country essentially inward-looking and the broader issue of nuclear plants and nuclear energy consumed much of the political energies of the last government.
In this context, the literal ‘comeback’ of the Liberal Democratic Party led by Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has inevitably raised ‘some’ expectations towards at least more stable management of both domestic and international issues. Do such expectations prove correct? So far, an outlook of ‘Abenomics’ does not look bad at all; at least the stock market has shown positive responses. On the politico-security front, however, we need to look at each issue more carefully. This seminar focuses on Japan’s regional relations after the return of the LDP as the country continues to face uncertain and fluid situations in the region as a whole, despite increased trade and investment and popular contact.
Dr Mutsumi Hirano is Associate Professor, Department of Political Science, Zhejiang University. She is currently working on Japan’s foreign policy in the post-Cold War period and regional dynamics in East Asia. Dr Hirano received an MA in Diplomatic Studies at University of Keele and a PhD in International Relations at LSE. Her writings include ‘Sino-Japanese Relations at the Turn of Century’, History Education and International Relations and Japanese Foreign Policy since 1989 (forthcoming). Her broader research interests are International Relations Theory, Foreign Policy Analysis, Japan’s regional and international relations and human security.
Professor Ian Nish is Emeritus Professor of International History.
Additional Information
This event is free and open to all with no ticket required. Entry is on a first come, first served basis. For any queries email arc@lse.ac.uk or call 020 7955 7615.