Stanford University

Is Japan Resurgent? Measuring Military Assertiveness and Nationalism in Asia's Other Great Power

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EMERGING ISSUES IN CONTEMPORARY ASIA

A Special Seminar Series

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ABSTRACT: Many commentators and scholars declare that Tokyo is shedding its postwar pacifism, and the Japanese nationalism is on the rise. To assess these claims, we analyze Japan’s military assertiveness and nationalism. Using public opinion and other data, we measure and compare these to two baselines both over time and across space (relative to seven other countries).  We find that (1) Japan’s military assertiveness remains very low in some ways, but has grown in others. The cross-national comparison shows that Japan remains the least assertive of the comparison countries. As for Japan’s national identity, (2) we distinguish theoretically between “nationalism” and a more benign “patriotism.” Patriotism is strong and stable over time. Public opinion shows some evidence of nationalistic sentiment. Other data reflect growing self-criticism and empathy. Evidence thus contradicts the claim of Japanese resurgence. These findings have important theoretical implications for the nationalism literature and for scholarly debates about Japan, and they shed light on policy questions related to the nascent U.S. balancing effort in East Asia. To the extent that the Japanese could be convinced to be a more active regional partner, it would be a responsible one.
 
Jennifer Lind
PROFILE: Jennifer Lind is Associate Professor in the Department of Government at Dartmouth, a Faculty Associate at the Reischauer Institute for Japanese Studies at Harvard University, and a Research Associate at Chatham House, London. Professor Lind is an expert on East Asian international relations and US foreign policy toward the region. She is the author of Sorry States: Apologies in International Politics, which examines the effect of war memory on international reconciliation (Cornell University Press, 2008). She has also written numerous scholarly articles in journals such as International Security and International Studies Quarterly, and often writes for wider audiences in Foreign Affairs and National Interest. Her commentary is regularly quoted in The New York Times, Washington Post, The Wall Street Journal, and National Public Radio.
 
Philippines Conference RoomEncina Hall, 3rd Floor, Central616 Serra MallStanford, CA 94305
Jennifer Lind Associate Professor of Government, Dartmouth University

China Is Pushing Back Against Taiwan for These Three Reasons

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Ketian Zhang
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On March 31, Taiwan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs reported that two Chinese Air Force (PLAAF) J-11 jets crossed the median line of the Taiwan Strait. This violated the long-held tacit agreement between China and Taiwan that neither side should cross the median line.

Taiwan deemed this “an intentional, reckless & provocative action,” which triggered “a 10-minute standoff” in the air. As Asia security expert Bonnie S. Glaser notes that, if intentional, this would be the first PLAAF crossing of the median line in about 20 years. In this case, it’s likely that Taiwan, not the South China Sea, prompted Beijing’s actions.

An unresolved issue from the Chinese civil war, Taiwan has always been a “core interest” to party leaders in Beijing. Here are some key takeaways from my research on China-Taiwan relations…

Read the full article in The Washington Post.

To hear more from Ketian, don't miss her recently posted video Q&A. In addition, be sure to RSVP for her April 16 seminar "Killing the Chicken to Scare the Monkey: Explaining Coercion by China in the South China Sea."

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The marines of China navy participate in the annual military training on January 3, 2018 in Zhanjiang,
ZHANJIANG, CHINA - JANUARY 03: The marines of China navy participate in the annual military training on January 3, 2018 in Zhanjiang, Guangdong Province of China.
Pu Haiyang/VCG via Getty Images
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Video Interview with Postdoctoral Fellow Ketian Zhang

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We sat down with our 2018-19 Shorenstein Postdoctoral Fellow in Contemporary Asia Ketian Zhang to discuss China's use of coercion in foreign policy; her research on  South China Sea disputes; her forthcoming articles; and the fellowship experience in general. To hear more from Ketian, RSVP for her April 16 seminar "Killing the Chicken to Scare the Monkey: Explaining Coercion by China in the South China Sea."

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Ketian Zhang participating in Q&A Thom Holme, APARC
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Nan Jia

616 Serra MallEncina Hall E301Stanford, CA 94305-6055
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nan_jia.jpg Ph.D.

Nan Jia joined the Walter H. Shorenstein Asia-Pacific Research Center (Shorenstein APARC) during the 2019-2020 academic year as a visiting scholar, from the University of Southern California, where she serves as Associate Professor of Strategic Management at the Marshall School of Business. She obtained her Ph.D. in Strategic Management from the University of Toronto's Joseph L. Rotman School of Management.

Visiting Scholar at APARC

Video Interview with Koret Fellow Andray Abrahamian

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We sat down with our 2018-19 Koret Fellow in Korean Studies Andray Abrahamian to discuss North Korea denuclearization and the approaching Trump-Kim second summit in Hanoi; Abrahamian's work with the nonprofit organization Choson Exchange that took him to North Korea nearly thirty times; his book that compares North Korea and Myanmar; and his fellowship experience. Watch: 

 

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Andray Abrahamian sitting down for an interview at Stanford.
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Civil Wars, Intrastate Violence, and International Responses

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From October 22–23, 2018, the U.S.-Asia Security Initiative (USASI) at Stanford University, in conjunction with the Institute for China-U.S. People-to-People Exchange at Peking University and the American Academy of Arts and Sciences (AAAS), gathered scholars and policy practitioners at the Stanford Center at Peking University to participate in the “Civil Wars, Intrastate Violence, and International Responses” workshop. The workshop was an extension of a project examining the threats posed by intrastate warfare launched in 2015 and led by AAAS and Stanford University’s Freeman Spogli Institute for International Studies. The goal of this workshop was to facilitate frank discussions exposing participants to a wide range of views on intrastate violence and international responses.

The workshop was divided into sessions that assessed trends in intrastate violence since the end of the Cold War, examined the threats to international security posed by civil wars and intrastate violence, and evaluated international responses, including an analysis of the limits of intervention and a discussion of policy recommendations. Participants also had an opportunity to make closing comments and recommendations for future research.

This report provides an executive summary and summaries of the workshop sessions on a non-attribution basis.
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Why Walking Away from Kim's Deal May Have Been the Right Move

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Gi-Wook Shin
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President Trump caught the world by surprise once again yesterday with a decision not to sign a deal with his North Korean counterpart, Chairman Kim Jong-un, in Hanoi, Vietnam. While walking away is a common tactic in working-level negotiation, what happened in Hanoi was a rare case and the least expected outcome.

Read the full article on Axios.

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President Trump waves to camera at Hanoi Summit
President Trump at a news conference following his second summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un.
Tuan Mark via Getty Images
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Success of Second Trump-Kim Summit Will Lie in the Details

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Gi-Wook Shin
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This post was originally published on Axios.

While President Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un’s June 2018 meeting ended with a broad statement — committing to “establish new U.S.-DPRK relations” for “a lasting and stable peace regime on the Korean Peninsula” — they will aim to take more concrete steps forward at their second summit in Hanoi this week.

Between the lines: To keep up the diplomatic momentum, Trump and Kim will need to minimize existing ambiguities and divergences on key issues — including the definition of denuclearization — and produce a comprehensive road map that lays out the specifics of their proclaimed shared vision. Without these agreements, the Hanoi summit could be easily denigrated as “just another show.”

Where it stands: Trump and Kim each face immense pressure, both international and domestic, to make progress.

  • Trump needs to earn political trust back in Washington to continue negotiating with North Korea. His strategy so far has been to convince Kim that North Korea’s denuclearization would bring the country a “bright future.”
  • At the same time, Trump must address Kim’s concerns about whether any agreement reached with his administration will withstand the Democrat-controlled House and survive the post-Trump era.

Between the lines: Successful diplomacy sometimes entails purposeful ambiguities, and the ambiguities of the first Trump-Kim summit might indeed have been strategic. At this critical juncture, however, a failure on Trump’s and Kim’s part to commit to defined objectives could hurt the bilateral relationship.

The bottom line: Trump and Kim need support more than ever to advance their diplomatic endeavors. While spectators have good reason to be skeptical, and one can only be cautiously hopeful with North Korea, a return to confrontation or "strategic patience" is in no one’s interest.

Gi-Wook Shin is the William J. Perry Professor of Contemporary Korea and director of the Walter H. Shorenstein Asia-Pacific Research Center at Stanford University.

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Banner welcoming Kim and Trump to Vietnam
A banner hung opposite the Marriott Hotel in Hanoi, Vietnam, where President Trump is expected to stay during his summit with Kim Jong-un, on Feb. 25.
Carl Court via Getty Images
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HOW DOES VENTURE CAPITAL WORK AND HOW DO JAPANESE CORPORATIONS LEVERAGE VENTURE CAPITAL?

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Since its establishment, DNX Ventures (formerly Draper Nexus Ventures) has acted as a bridge between growing Silicon Valley businesses and large Japanese firms. Since 2011, DNX Ventures has created more than 100 partnerships between its portfolio companies and its over 25 large Japanese corporate LPs. During this seminar, Managing Director of DNX Ventures Hiro Rio Maeda will extrapolate from his over 15 years of experience in both corporate venture capital and venture capital and extensive experience working with both startups and large Japanese corporations to discuss the basics of venture capital, and how Japanese corporations leverage venture capital to push forward open innovation initiatives. From a VC perspective: how are decisions about strategic investments made? How does money flow? What ratio of successful investments to non-successful investments do VCs aim for? From a large Japanese corporate perspective: how do large Japanese firms use VC to achieve open innovation goals? What are some of the obstacles to Japanese large firm-startup partnerships, and what are some of the ways to overcome these challenges? Maeda will answer these questions and more, as well as share examples of successful partnerships and large Japanese firms that are successfully harnessing Silicon Valley to further open innovation efforts.  

SPEAKER:

Hiro Rio Maeda, Managing Director, DNX Ventures (formerly Draper Nexus)

BIO:

Hiro Rio Maeda is a Managing Director at venture capital firm DNX Ventures (formerly Draper Nexus). Rio focuses on investing in innovative companies in Cyber Security, mobile, storage, and retail tech area that could work on a global scale. His portfolio companies include Cylance, SafeBreach, JASK, vArmour, AppDome, Ayasdi, Remotium, Klout, Fyde, JoyMode, and Hom.ma. 

Prior to joining DNX Ventures (formerly Draper Nexus), Rio spent six years at Globespan Capital Partners where he had put his resource on both investment and business development of Japan/US portfolio companies. Palo Alto Networks(NYSE: PANW) was a good example portfolio company that he took a lead on taking them to the Japanese market.

Prior to Globespan, Rio spent seven years at Sumitomo Corporation, a Japanese conglomerate trading company in which he had built expertise his international business skill in IT technologies and consumer web services in Tokyo and his capitalist career at Presidio Ventures (Sumitomo’s corporate venture capital arm) in Santa Clara.Japanese conglomerate trading company in which he had built expertise his international business skill in IT technologies and consumer web services in Tokyo and his capitalist career at Presidio Ventures (Sumitomo’s corporate venture capital arm) in Santa Clara.

AGENDA:

4:15pm: Doors open
4:30pm-5:30pm: Talk and Discussion
5:30pm-6:00pm: Networking

RSVP REQUIRED:

Register to attend at http://www.stanford-svnj.org/22819-public-forum

For more information about the Silicon Valley-New Japan Project please visit: http://www.stanford-svnj.org/

 

Hiro Rio Maeda, Managing Director, DNX Ventures (formerly Draper Nexus)
Seminars

Podcast: Donald K. Emmerson on How Southeast Asian Nations Balance China-U.S. Relations

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As tension grows between China and the United States, its effects are felt across Asia. APARC's Southeast Asia Program Director Donald K. Emmerson sat down with Michael McFaul, FSI's Director and host of FSI's podcast World Class, to talk about why Southeast Asia in particular is caught in that rising tension between China and the United States and what can be done to prevent it from becoming a battle ground for a new Cold War between the two superpowers.

Listen to the conversation:

 

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