The 13th US Congressional staff delegation comprising nine members visited Japan on March 30-April 6, 1997, at a time when foreign policy experts were troubled by developments in Asia Pacific. Accordingly, the US-Japan security relationship and the challenges posed by a Japanese economy in recession were priorities on the program agenda. Speakers to the delegation included Masashi Nishihara, an international relations expert with the National Defense Academy; Ira Wolf, an executive with Eastman Kodak, Asia-Pacific Ltd., and former assistant US trade representative; Glen Fukushima, an executive with AT&T Japan; Koichi Kato, secretary-general of the Liberal Democratic Party; and senior members of three opposition parties. The delegation also met executives of major Japanese corporations, gaining a sense of the difference in opinions between the corporate and government sectors on fiscal reform. Business leaders expressed particular interest in the delegation’s views on the state of American politics, and a panel discussion at the Keidanren (Japan Federation of Economic Organizations) featuring the Congressional staff delegation attracted nearly 50 executives.