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April 27, 2017 - In This Issue:
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Fourth Annual Security Forum: The U.S.-Japan Alliance: Foundation of Asian Security
Sasakawa USA will bring together key security experts and officials from government, business, think tanks, and academia for its Fourth Annual Security Forum at Willard InterContinental Hotel Ballroom in Washington, D.C. Building upon the success of
previous security forums, the May 2 event will focus on topics including key issues in the U.S.-Japan alliance, Asia policy under both administrations, the regional role of the alliance, defense capabilities and cooperation, and Japan's role in global security.
This event is free and open to the public, though advance registration will be required.
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In the News: Japan reconsiders TPP, and Prime Minister Abe as a beacon of stability
TPP is Japan's best option, says Sasakawa USA's Tobias Harris: A Washington Post article looks at Japan's potential return to the Trans-Pacific Partnership, citing expert insights from Sasakawa USA Fellow Tobias Harris. According to Harris, returning to TPP without the U.S. may be Japan's best option.
Click here to read more.
Japanese voters happy with government stability, not looking for change:
In his third term as Prime Minister, Shinzo Abe has seen government approval ratings consistently above 50%. In a recent Quartz article, Sasakawa USA's Tobias Harris sheds light on the factors behind Prime Minister Abe's high approval rating, highlighting Abe's long tenure as Prime Minister and the ongoing challenge of North Korea.
Click here to read more.
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From Nippon.com: Easier permanent residency for foreign professionals, and Japan's birthrate drops below 1 million
Easier permanent residency for highly-skilled foreign professionals in Japan: Prime Minister Abe Shinzo's administration has made luring more "highly skilled foreign professionals" to Japan a critical link in its growth strategy. Yet the challenges could far outweigh the benefits if more and more immigrants are allowed into Japan before appropriate preparations are put in place.
Click here to read more.
Japan's birthrate drops below 1 million:
Japan's population shrank again in 2016, as the number of births fell below one million for the first time since statistics were first compiled. This article examines the year's demographic data from the Ministry of Health, Labor, and Welfare.
Click here to read more.
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Event Recap: Critical Mineral Supply Chains for Energy Storage
On April 26, Sasakawa USA and Benchmark Mineral Intelligence hosted a unique event exploring the bottlenecks and opportunities in the lithium-ion battery supply chain, from raw material (lithium, graphite, cobalt) to the growth in electric vehicles and utility storage markets.
The seminar was part of the Benchmark World Tour 2017, an annual series of investment seminars on the lithium-ion battery supply chain developed by Benchmark Mineral Intelligence.
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Event Recap: Japan and Africa: Regional Views and U.S.-Japan Cooperation
On April 4, Sasakawa USA held the first of its "Views of Japan" event series, exploring perceptions on Japan in other regions around the world, at the Cosmos Club in Washington, D.C.
This inaugural event, "Japan and Africa: Regional Views and U.S.-Japan Cooperation," focused on Japan's engagement in Africa and how the country is perceived on the continent.
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Event Recap: Japan, the United States, and Democracy Promotion
During the forum, panelists described the current state of democracy in the world, including challenges and opportunities for democracy promotion, and introduced the themes and recommendations included in "U.S.-Japan Approaches to Democracy Promotion."
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Maritime Awareness Project: Diverging Paths? Singapore-China Relations and the East Asian Maritime Domain
Singapore and China are experiencing an unprecedented period of friction in their usually calm bilateral relations, writes Ja Ian Chong
for the Maritime Awareness Project (MAP), a joint venture by Sasakawa USA and the National Bureau for Asian Research.
Chong goes on to analyze the factors such as divergent perspectives on the existing international order and international law that increased tension in the China-Singapore relationship.
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Job opportunity: Program Assistant for the Education program
Sasakawa USA is currently accepting applications for a Program Assistant (twelve-month contract) for the Education program. The Program Assistant will provide programmatic and administrative support to the Associate Program Officer, and assist with event planning and execution and communications. The deadline to apply is April 28, 2017.
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Reminder: Last chance for applications for the EWC-Sasakawa USA Congressional Staff Program on Asia
Applications are now being accepted for the Congressional Staff Program on Asia, a bipartisan educational certificate program that aims to equip Congressional staffers with greater knowledge of U.S.-Asia policy.
The program is administered by the East-West Center in Washington with support from Sasakawa USA, and consists of a weekly series of luncheon talks on Capitol Hill in June and July, 2017. The deadline to apply is May 1, 2017.
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Sasakawa USA Forum: Accepting submissions for papers on
U.S.-Japan relations
In order to gain a more comprehensive view of U.S.-Japan relations, the Sasakawa USA Forum offers experts outside Sasakawa USA a chance to bring their work to a wide audience.
The Sasakawa USA Forum is now accepting submissions for future publication. Submissions should be 750 to 2,000 words in length and written on issues that previously have been inadequately covered regarding Japan or U.S.-Japan relations from a bilateral, regional, and global context. Submissions are accepted on a rolling basis, and the submission deadline for spring 2017 is May 10. Authors of accepted submissions will receive a modest honorarium. To submit an article for consideration, please contact Research Assistant Graham Dietz at gdietz@spfusa.org.
Click here for more details.
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Upcoming events: May 2017
The Fourth Annual Security Forum is Sasakawa USA's biggest security event of the year! RSVP today for access to expert panels on U.S.-Asia security. Please check our events page for event details and new listings as they get posted.
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