Japanese Politics & Foreign Relations
JCIE programs deepen understanding of the political and foreign policy dynamics in Japan, promote a greater Japanese voice in international affairs, and build ties among leaders from various sectors—government, business, civil society, academia, and more—in Japan and around the world.
CURRENT PROGRAMS
RELATED ACTIVITIES
TICAD9 Thematic Event: Africa-Japan Common Vision on Health—Co-creating Health Security and Sustainable Growth
August 21, 2025 | Yokohama, Japan
On August 21, 2025, JCIE convened globally renowned leaders in health, science, policy, and business from Africa and Japan to introduce and deepen discussions on a Common Vision calling for cooperatio…
FGFJ | TICAD9 Thematic Event—Sustainable Health Financing in Africa: From Commitments to Action
August 20, 2025 | Yokohama, Japan
The Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria and the Japan Center for International Exchange (JCIE)/Friends of the Global Fund, Japan (FGFJ) co-organized a thematic event titled “Sustainabl…
Bipartisan group of US Congress Members Introduce Resolution Recognizing Launch of Japanese Diet "Caucus for Universal Values in the Indo-Pacific"
August 25, 2025 | Washington DC
On August 15, a bipartisan group of US Congress Members, led by Representative Joaquin Castro (D-TX), introduced a resolution recognizing and commending the launch of a new “Caucus for Universal Value…
JCIE USA Briefing & Discussion on Japanese Politics: “Japan’s Upper House Election: Key Takeaways”
July 22, 2025 | Online (Zoom)
JCIE USA hosted a private discussion on Japan’s Upper House Elections with three experts from Japan and the United States. In addition to providing an overview of the results in terms of voter turnout…
2025 US Congressional Staff Exchange
May 25–May 31, 2025 | Tokyo, Yokosuka, and Osaka
The 2025 US Congressional Staff Exchange Program gave 6 Congressional staffers the chance to travel Japan, where they met with Japanese leaders across politics, media, and academia.
Japanese Diet Members Launch New "Caucus for Universal Values in the Indo-Pacific"
May 15, 2025 | Tokyo
On May 15, 2025 a multiparty group of Japanese Diet members launched a new “Caucus for Universal Vales in the Indo-Pacific”
US-Japan Legislative Exchanges with the Mt. Fuji Dialogue Delegation
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JCIE USA helped facilitate legislative exchanges between US members of Congress and the members of the 2025 Mt. Fuji Dialogue delegation during the delegation’s annual visit to Washington DC.
2025 Women Leaders Delegation to Japan
February 25–27, 2025 | Tokyo
The US-Japan Women Leaders Dialogue brought a bipartisan duo of state legislators to Japan for briefings and roundtables on US-Japan trade and security ties and on women’s empowerment in politics and…
UK-Japan 21st Century Group | 41st Conference
March 14–16, 2025 | London and Fordham
The 41st annual meeting of the UK-Japan 21st Century Group met in England to discuss critical issues facing bilateral relations and global geopolitics, including healthcare, partnership in science, te…
2024 US Young Political Leaders 50th Anniversary Delegation to Japan
December 14–22, 2024 | Tokyo, Yamaguchi
A bipartisan delegation of seven US young political leaders traveled to Japan to meet with a variety of policymakers, business leaders, and local-level politicians in Tokyo and Yamaguchi Prefecture.
32nd Japanese-German Forum
October 29–31, 2024 | Tokyo
At the 32nd Japanese-German Forum, held in Tokyo, Japanese and German politicians, policy experts, business leaders, and journalists discussed key bilateral topics including demographic changes, the i…
JCIE USA Hosts Meetings with Yasuhisa Shiozaki on Global Health and US-Japan Relations
September 23–26, 2024 | Washington DC and New York NY
JCIE USA hosted a series of events with Hon. Yasuhisa Shiozaki, chair of JCIE’s Executive Committee on Global Health & Human Security and Japan’s former Minister of Health, Labour & Welfare, to Washin…
ROUNDTABLE | The LDP Leadership Race & Implications for US-Japan Relations
September 24, 2024 | Washington DC
JCIE/USA hosted a luncheon discussion on the Liberal Democratic Party’s (LDP) leadership race and its implications for US-Japan relations ahead of the upcoming US presidential election. The featured s…
32nd Korea-Japan Forum
August 29–31, 2024 | Tokyo
The 32nd Korea-Japan Forum, held in Tokyo, brought together participants to discuss domestic political shifts and bilateral relations, economic and security issues facing the two countries, and the la…
2024 Diet Delegation to Indonesia
July 22–25, 2024 | Indonesia
JCIE organized a bipartisan Diet delegation to Indonesia on July 22–June 25, 2024, as part of its Democracy for the Future program.
RECENT PUBLICATIONS
Africa-Japan Common Vision on Health: Co-creating Health Security and Sustainable Growth
Africa-Japan Common Vision on Health Working Group
2025
In preparation for the 9th Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD9), JCIE launched a working group comprised of Japanese and African experts on health and development to define t…
Report of the 2023 US-Japan Women Leaders Dialogue | Empowering Our Future
Kimberly Gould Ashizawa
2024
Report on the findings from the 2023 US-Japan Women Leaders Dialogue, which featured a visit to the US by six Japanese political and business leaders to discuss US-Japan and international relations, w…
Beware the US-Japan Alliance China Gap
August 2023
Amid the intensifying rivalry between the United States and China, Japan finds itself in an increasingly delicate situation, caught between its security guarantor and its leading economic partner. As…
Report of the 2022 US-Japan Women Leaders Dialogue | Moving the Needle on Gender Equity through US-Japan Collaboration
Kimberly Gould Ashizawa
December 2022
A report on the 2022 US-Japan Women Leaders Dialogue, held virtually, features recommendations based on the discussions among 40 women from politics, business, media, think tanks, and civil society.
Japan’s Democracy: Lessons and Reflections | Concluding Paper
Harukata Takenaka
May 2022
This report serves as the concluding paper for a project on “Japan’s Democracy: Lessons and Reflections” and was written by the project lead, Dr. Harukata Takenaka, to summarize the key points that em…
The China Challenge and US-Japan Relations under Fumio Kishida
December 2021
Japan’s new Prime Minister, Fumio Kishida, passed his first test and guided the ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) to victory in the Lower House election on October 31, less than one month after he…
Japan’s Democracy: Lessons and Reflections 3 | Civil Society, Diversity, and Media
Harukata Takenaka, Toshiki Abe, Rieko Kage, Kaori Hayashi
April 2022
This report transcribes discussions that took place as part of JCIE’s project on “Japan’s Democracy: Lessons and Reflections”. The report details the contents of the 3rd dialogue to take place as part…
Japan’s Democracy: Lessons and Reflections 2 | Government Systems
Harukata Takenaka, Yosuke Sunahara, Satoshi Machidori, Takako Hikotani
April 2022
This report transcribes discussions that took place as part of JCIE’s project on “Japan’s Democracy: Lessons and Reflections”. The report details the contents of the 2nd dialogue to take place as part…
Japan’s Democracy: Lessons and Reflections 1 | The Current State of Japan’s Democracy
Harukata Takenaka, Kenneth Mori McElwain, Kensuke Takayasu, and Naoko Taniguchi
April 2022
This report transcribes discussions that took place amongst members of JCIE’s research team for our project on Expanding Support for Democratic Governance. The initial discussion took place shortly af…
Report of the 2021 US-Japan Women Leaders Dialogue | Seeking the "Next Normal"—Creating a Post-Pandemic World Where Women (and Men) Can Thrive
Kimberly Gould Ashizawa
July 2021
A report on the 2021 US-Japan Women Leaders Dialogue, held virtually in March–April 2021, featuring a series of recommendations based on the discussions among 40 women from politics, business, media,…
Research Team Trialogue 2: The Spread of COVID-19 and Its Impact on Global Democracy
Kaori Shoji, Hiroaka Shiga, and Ryo Sahashi
January 2021
This transcription of a discussion between three research team members from JCIE’s project on Expanding Support for Democratic Governance focuses on the potential threats to democracy in the light of…
Deepening US-Japan Strategic Cooperation on China and the Indo-Pacific
June 2021
The new Biden administration has emphasized the importance of cooperation with East Asian allies to uphold a stable, rules-based regional order, while at the same time seeking a tough and united appro…
The Time Has Come for a COVID-19 Marshall Plan
James Gannon
May 25, 2021
“In his announcement of COVID-19 vaccine donations, President Biden evoked World War II by vowing that the U.S. will be the world’s “arsenal of vaccines.” It is time to instead harken back to the imme…
Research Team Trialogue: The Spread of COVID-19 and Its Impact on Global Democracy
Takako Hikotani, Harukata Takenaka, and Kimitoshi Yabuki
November 2020
This transcription shares a conversation between three JCIE research team members from the project on Expanding Support for Democratic Governance on their assessments of the current state of democracy…
Japan's Friendship with the US Remains Unshakable
Koji Tomita
March 11, 2021
This opinion piece was written by Ambassador Koji Tomita, who references a 2016 JCIE survey on US givings in the Great Tohoku Earthquake and Tsunami disaster response.