CSIS Japan Chair

📅 March 18 | 2:30 pm ET

Join the CSIS Japan Chair hear from leading experts, Chikako Kawakatsu Ueki (Waseda University), Riho Aizawa (NIDS), and @kristigovella.bsky.social, on regional stability and challenges posed by autocratic states.

👉 https://bit.ly/4l9v5PP

Applications are open for the CSIS Japan Chair summer internship. The priority deadline is Friday, April 10, 2026.

For more information, visit https://careers.csis.org/opportunities/1746

Today, CSIS announces retired Gen. Joseph F. Dunford, the 19th chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, has been named our next CEO, succeeding John Hamre, who announced last year that he will retire after 26 years of transformational leadership.

Read more: bit.ly/4b383Ha

Explore the strategic implications of China-Russia cooperation and more at "Strategic Japan 2026: Countering Challenges from Autocratic Powers" featuring Chikako Kawakatsu Ueki (Waseda University), Riho Aizawa (NIDS), and @kristigovella.bsky.social.

🔗 Register: https://bit.ly/4l9v5PP

Takaichi says oil reserves to be tapped as Iran conflict hits crude flows Japan holds stockpiled oil equivalent to about 254 days of domestic demand. The release of some of that could begin as soon as Monday.

News on Japan: Japan will tap its oil reserves for the first time since 2022 as the war in the Middle East disrupts crude flows and raises the risk of supply shortages.

Read here: https://www.japantimes.co.jp/business/2026/03/11/takaichi-oil-release/

Join us on 3/18 for Strategic Japan 2026: Countering Challenges from Autocratic Powers

Hear scholars, Chikako Kawakatsu Ueki (Waseda University), Riho Aizawa (NIDS), and @kristigovella.bsky.social discuss Japan’s role amid shifting global power dynamics.

👉 https://bit.ly/4l9v5PP

Japan’s Takaichi Considers Using Reserve Funds to Counter Rising Electricity, Gas Costs; Says Government Has Not Determined Mideast Situation to Be Survival-Threatening <p>Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi revealed during the House of Representatives Budget Committee’s intensive debates on Monday that her administration is considering countermeasures to address rising el...

News on Japan: Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi revealed that her administration is considering countermeasures to address rising electricity and gas costs due to soaring crude oil prices caused by the ongoing situation in Iran.

Read here: https://bit.ly/4rrXulQ

Reminder: The CSIS Japan Chair is recruiting a deputy director who will play a central role in program administration and activities.

More information: https://careers.csis.org/opportunities/1739

State control planned for munition plants to supply SDF | The Asahi Shimbun: Breaking News, Japan News and Analysis Japan plans to nationalize munition plants that will be operated by private contractors to ensure the Self-Defense Forces are amply supplied with ordnance during long-term contingencies, government so...

News on Japan: Japan plans to nationalize munition plants that will be operated by private contractors to ensure the Self-Defense Forces are amply supplied with ordnance during long-term contingencies, government sources said.

Read here: https://www.asahi.com/ajw/articles/16345247

LDP-JIP coalition submits proposal to revise rules on defense equipment exports The ruling parties’ joint security committee seeks to relax export rules for defense equipment, which would be a major policy shift for Japan.

News on Japan: In a major policy shift, the ruling coalition submitted a proposal to Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s government Friday calling for a loosening of existing restrictions on Japan’s defense equipment exports.

Read here: https://bit.ly/4cx1uhe

Japan in talks to use NATO's defense-tech accelerator Nation's startups could be first outsiders with access to alliance's innovation program

News on Japan: Japan could become the first non-NATO member whose companies are given access to the Western alliance's defense-tech accelerator now that the two parties are negotiating a deal.

Read here: https://asia.nikkei.com/politics/defense/japan-in-talks-to-use-nato-s-defense-tech-accelerator

The CSIS Japan Chair is recruiting a deputy director who will play a central role in program administration and activities.

More information: https://bit.ly/3OFuwkW

Save the date: March 18 @ 2:30 pm - 3:30 pm

Join Strategic Japan 2026 scholars, Chikako Kawakatsu Ueki (Waseda University) & Riho Aizawa (National Institute for Defense Studies), for a discussion with @kristigovella.bsky.social on the challenges posed by autocratic states.

🔗 https://bit.ly/4l9v5PP

Japan to weigh collective self-defense use case by case amid Middle East conflict The country could determine whether to exercise its right to collective self-defense in the event of a blockade of the Strait of Hormuz with missiles from Iran or elsewhere.

News on Japan: Japan will determine case by case whether to exercise its right to collective self-defense in the event of a blockade of the Strait of Hormuz with missiles from Iran or elsewhere, the top government spokesman has said.

Read here: https://bit.ly/3MXWec4

Japan PM to hold 'candid talks' on Iran at March summit with Trump - The Mainichi TOKYO (Kyodo) -- Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi said Tuesday she will hold

News on Japan: Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi said she will hold "candid talks" with U.S. President Donald Trump on the strikes conducted by his nation and Israel on Iran when they meet for a summit in Washington later this month.

Read here: https://bit.ly/4aNJhuD

Stocks trade lower in Tokyo and yen weak after the U.S. and Israel strike Iran Politicians and economists argue that the situation in Japan is manageable unless the conflict becomes prolonged.

News on Japan: Stocks fell in Tokyo after conflict in the Middle East escalated over the weekend and the price of oil jumped, while the yen also weakened as traders and investors evaluated its safe-haven status in the current environment.

Read here: https://bit.ly/4r8FI7c

Japan gov't owns 11% voting rights in Rapidus to push domestic chip output The Japanese government said Friday it has become the largest shareholder in state-backed chipmaker Rapidus Corp., holding 11.5 percent of its voting rights in its latest push to establish a stable do...

News on Japan: The Japanese government said it has become the largest shareholder in state-backed chipmaker Rapidus Corp., holding 11.5 percent of its voting rights in its latest push to establish a stable domestic supply of semiconductors.

Read here: https://bit.ly/46uZ1A7

Consumption tax panel kicks off without two opposition parties Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi had hoped to use the panel to achieve consensus across parties on how to lift the tax for two years.

News on Japan: A nonpartisan panel on temporarily lifting the consumption tax on groceries got off to a rocky start Thursday, as two major opposition parties decided not to participate in its deliberations for now.

Read here: https://bit.ly/3ODfQCL

OUT NOW | The Capital Cable #129

The latest episode unpacks what Japan’s election means for US strategy, the Korean Peninsula, and China’s coercion.

With @csis.org experts Mark Lippert, @kristigovella.bsky.social, @philuck.bsky.social and @brookings.edu Andrew Yeo.

🔗ICYMI: youtu.be/-hQiAcHJ3H0

China adds 20 more Japanese groups to export control list | NHK WORLD-JAPAN News China says it will ban the export of items that have both civilian and military applications to 20 additional Japanese businesses and groups. It claims the entities are involved in enhancing Japan's m...

News on Japan: China says it will ban the export of items that have both civilian and military applications to 20 additional Japanese businesses and groups. It claims the entities are involved in enhancing Japan's military capabilities.

Read here: https://bit.ly/3OqHm6x

"The concrete impact of the decision will likely be limited," writes @japan.csis.org expert @kristigovella.bsky.social, as non-IEEPA auto tariffs remain in place. "The specter of tariffs will continue to loom over the U.S.-Japan relationship in alternative forms."

State of Play: The Global Impact of the SCOTUS Decision on IEEPA Tariffs On February 20, the U.S. Supreme Court declared President Donald Trump’s use of IEEPA to impose global tariffs against U.S. trading partners illegal. CSIS experts assess how governments and key sector...

Last week, the Supreme Court ruled Trump’s global tariffs under the Emergency Economic Powers Act illegal. Experts from @geopolitics.csis.org assess how governments and key sectors around the world are likely to react to the decision.

Read here: https://bit.ly/40l4qWH

ICYMI | Nick Szechenyi and Yuko Nakano argue that the Liberal Democratic Party's decisive win gives PM Takaichi greater latitude to advance her domestic policy agenda and bolsters her diplomatic bona fides ahead of a March summit with President Trump.

🔗 https://bit.ly/4aHz0yO

Last week the CSIS Japan Chair welcomed a Keidanren delegation led by NEC's Takayuki Morita. The delegation had a thorough discussion with Dr. John J. Hamre, @navingirishankar.bsky.social, and @philuck.bsky.social (@est.csis.org)

State of Play: The Global Impact of the SCOTUS Decision on IEEPA Tariffs On February 20, the U.S. Supreme Court declared President Donald Trump’s use of IEEPA to impose global tariffs against U.S. trading partners illegal. CSIS experts assess how governments and key sector...

The U.S. Supreme Court declared President Trump’s use of IEEPA to impose global tariffs against U.S. trading partners illegal. @geopolitics.csis.org assesses how governments and key sectors around the world are likely to interpret and react to the decision: www.csis.org/analysis/sta...

Inside Japan’s High-Stakes Snap Election | CSIS Events The CSIS Japan Chair analyzes the results of Japan’s February 8 snap election and its impact on Japanese politics and foreign policy.

Rewatch our virtual discussion with experts @kristigovella.bsky.social, @cmcclean.bsky.social, and Nicholas Szechenyi on Japan's general election results.

📍 Watch here: https://bit.ly/45HEAPT

Takaichi vows to end austerity, bolster security in policy speech | The Asahi Shimbun: Breaking News, Japan News and Analysis

News on Japan: PM Takaichi, in her first policy speech to the Diet on Feb. 20, called for an end to "excessive austerity" to spur domestic investment and outlined a robust security agenda to strengthen alliances and national intelligence.

Read here: https://www.asahi.com/ajw/articles/16369027

@kristigovella.bsky.social joined experts Mark Lippert, @philuck.bsky.social and @brookings.edu Andrew Yeo on @korea.csis.org's recent episode of Capital Cable where they unpacked what Japan’s election means for U.S. strategy, the Korean Peninsula, and China’s coercion.

📺 https://t.co/F7khYNhbMY

Japan panel approves world's first iPS cell-based therapies Parkinson's and heart disease treatments available 20 years on from breakthrough

News on Japan: Japan moved a step closer to approving the sale of two regenerative medicine products using induced pluripotent stem cells, marking the world's first iPS cell-based treatments to near commercial use.

Read here: https://s.nikkei.com/4rTs9cm

Trump unveils 1st set of Japan projects worth $36 billion under trade deal U.S. President Donald Trump's administration said Tuesday that Japan will finance the production of synthetic diamonds and two energy projects worth about $36 billion as the initial tranche of investm...

News on Japan: President Trump's administration said that Japan will finance the production of synthetic diamonds and two energy projects worth about $36 billion as the initial tranche of investments under a deal reached last year.

Read here: https://bit.ly/4kFkXOE