Elections Aftermath: Exploring Opportunities and Challenges in U.S.-Japan Relations
In a world marked by growing political volatility and escalating U.S.-China rivalry, the United States and Japan face a crucial opportunity to collaborate under new leadership to maintain and strengthen peace and stability in East Asia and beyond.
On November 18, 2024, less than two weeks after Donald Trump’s re-election, Columbia University and Keio University convened top experts on East Asian and global politics for a full-day conference exploring the challenges and opportunities arising from leadership transitions in both Tokyo and Washington. Four individual sessions focused on how the two allies can shape the security and political dynamics of the Korean Peninsula, Southeast Asia, the Taiwan Strait, and the international order.
Taken cumulatively, these four sessions offer solutions for how the U.S.-Japan partnership can navigate these complexities and shape a cooperative future in an increasingly intricate global landscape. (Scroll down for videos of each session and lists of each session's participants.)
Download the conference agenda (PDF)
Download speaker profiles (PDF)
SESSION ONE: U.S.-JAPAN-SOUTH KOREA RELATIONS AFTER THE ELECTIONS
Introductory remarks:
Duy Linh Nguyen Tu, Dean of Academic Affairs and Professor of Professional Practice, Columbia University
Lien-Hang Nguyen, Director, Weatherhead East Asian Institute, Columbia University
Yuichi Hosoya, Director, Keio Center for Strategy, Keio University
Opening video by the Honorable Park Cheol-hee, Ambassador of the Republic of Korea to Japan
Speakers:
Junya Nishino, Professor of Political Science, Faculty of Law and Politics, Keio University
Ambassador Kathleen Stephens, Global Senior Advisor, McLarty Associates
Scott Snyder, President & CEO, Korea Economic Institute of America
Carol Gluck, George Sansom Professor Emerita of History, Columbia University
Gerald Curtis, Burgess Professor Emeritus of Political Science, Columbia University (moderator)
SESSION TWO: JAPAN AND THE U.S. IN SOUTHEAST ASIA AFTER THE ELECTIONS
Speakers:
Ambassador Derek Mitchell, Senior Advisor, Center for Strategic and International Studies
Ambassador Masafumi Ishii, Special Adjunct Professor, Faculty of Law, Gakushuin University
Ken Jimbo, Managing Director, International House of Japan; Professor, Faculty of Policy Management, Keio University
Lien-Hang Nguyen, Dorothy Borg Associate Professor of the History of American-East Asian Relations, Columbia University
Ann Marie Murphy, Professor, School of Diplomacy and International Relations, Seton Hall University (moderator)
SESSION THREE: CHINA, TAIWAN, AND THE U.S.-JAPAN ALLIANCE AFTER THE ELECTIONS
Speakers:
Andrew J. Nathan, Class of 1919 Professor of Political Science, Columbia University
Thomas Christensen, James T. Shotwell Professor of International Relations, Columbia University
Satoru Mori, Professor, Faculty of Law, Keio University
Ayumi Teraoka, Postdoctoral Research Scholar and Lecturer, Columbia University
George Miller, Associate Dean, Academic Affairs and Adjunct Professor, Columbia’s Journalism School (moderator)
SESSION FOUR: GLOBAL POLITICS AND INTERNATIONAL ORDER AFTER THE ELECTIONS
Speakers:
Yuichi Hosoya,Professor, Faculty of Law, Keio University
Michito Tsuruoka, Associate Professor, Faculty of Policy Management, Keio University
Stephen Biddle, Professor of International and Public Affairs, Columbia University
Zongyuan Zoe Liu, Maurice R. Greenberg Senior Fellow for China Studies, Council on Foreign Relations
Merit Janow, Professor of Practice in International Economic Law and International Affairs, Columbia University (moderator)
“Elections Aftermath: Exploring Opportunities and Challenges in U.S.-Japan Relations” was hosted by the Weatherhead East Asian Institute and co-sponsored by the Columbia-Harvard China and the World Program, Columbia Journalism School, Keio Center for Strategy, Keio Institute of East Asian Studies, and APEC Study Center.