Japan - U.S relations
To start, the total fertility rate (average number of babies a woman has over her lifetime) in Japan is currently
1.46. (A healthy total fertility rate for replacement is 2.1 children per child-bearing woman in most countries.)
How many Japanese Americans were held in 10 internment camps from May 1942 to January 1945?
110,000
The United States established diplomatic relations with Japan in what year?
1858
After WWII Normal diplomatic relations were reestablished in what year?
1952
U.S.-Japan alliance faced a major turning point in
1990 (as the Cold War wound down and a central pillar of the relationship—containment of the Soviet Union—began to fall away just as bilateral trade competition was peaking.)
How many people is Japan going to lose by 2050?
20 million
America and Japan's combined GDP accounts for what percentage of the global gross domestic product?
30%
How many Japanese Americans served in the U.S. Armed Forces?
33,000
Japanese Americans comprised ___% of Hawaii's population when Pearl Harbor was attacked.
40%
____% of the population will be over the age of 60 by 2050. T
42.5%
Japanese Americans were now permitted to form a special segregated infantry outfit - the unit would come to be called what?
442nd Infantry Regimental Combat Team
approximately how many U.S. military personnel are in Japan?
50,000
working-age Japanese population has contracted by __ percent over the past decade
6%
What percentage of Americans support US bases in Japan?
60%
What percentage of Japanese say that the US is the most important country for the future of Japan?
63%
Previous estimates have suggested that the Japanese government pays roughly what percent of the cost of supporting U.S. forces in Japan?
75
Together, the United States and Japan represented roughly ___ percent of the total economic activity covered by the TPP
80
What percent of Japanese report feeling close to the US?
84%
What percentage of Japanese say the US-Japan relationship is good
87%
According to a survey by Japan's Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry, and Fisheries, in July 2015 the number of Japanese restaurants in all markets outside Japan was nearly how many?
89,000
Representing over __% of carpenters and almost all the transportation workers in Hawaii, Japanese labor was essential for the rebuilding of Pearl Harbor.
90%
What percentage of Japanese say that the future development of US-Japan relations is important for the region
95%
In 1940, Japanese-American farmers grew ___% of the fresh snap beans and spring and summer celery, __% of the fresh tomatoes and __% of the onions in California.
95%, 67%,44%
Yanai Commission
A panel of 13 experts to study whether a revision to the Japanese contsitution would improve Japan's security. The panel recommended a revision of Article 9 so Japan could exercise its right to collective self-defense given to U.N. member states, which would allow the SDF to come to the aid of allies under armed attack with no preconditions.
Womenomics
A series of structural reforms that, in theory, will make it easier for women in Japan to have careers. If successful, Womenomics could change the face of Japanese society by creating more flexible working environments and increasing Japan's GDP by 15% without any change to the population. This could delay the negative effects of the aging population for up to 20 years.
What is Abenomics?
Abenomics refers to a set of aggressive monetary and fiscal policies, combined with structural reforms, geared toward pulling Japan out of its decades-long deflationary slump.
ARDB
Amphibious Rapid Deployment Brigade, The ARDB is the first amphibious unit deployed since World War II, trained to counter invaders occupying Japanese islands along the edge of the East China Sea that Tokyo fears are vulnerable to attack by China.
Perhaps the greatest regional challenge for the United States and Japan is...
China's growing political and economic influence throughout the Indo-Pacific region. In particular, China's Belt and Road Initiative is providing Beijing with substantial leverage, particularly over smaller states in Southeast Asia, the Indian Ocean, and the Pacific Islands.
Co-Develop Defense Equipment
Continuing to expand joint research and development efforts would increase both the efficiency and effectiveness of allied defense spending. Facing a rapidly modernizing Chinese military, the allies must conduct joint threat assessments, continue to acquire more advanced systems, and develop novel operational concepts.
Japan passed its new security laws in September 2015. These allowed the JSDF to exercise collective self-defense in four scenarios as outlined by the CLB in 2014:
Defending U.S. naval ships from attack in international waters while those ships are protecting Japan. Intercepting ballistic missiles targeting the U.S. and U.S. bases in the Pacific theater. Allowing GSDF to use weapons to respond to attacks on allied forces during peacekeeping operations. Providing logistical support to foreign forces during peacekeeping operations.
What has plagued the Japanese economy for two decades?
Deflation
The alliance's success has been due to its commitment to protect shared interests leveraging four enduring strengths, which are...
First, the allies played leading roles in constructing a peaceful and prosperous regional and international order. Second, the allies share values relating to the protection of human rights, democracy, free markets, and the rule of law. Third, the United States and Japan are two of the world's largest and most innovative economies. Fourth, the allies retain substantial military power, particularly in Northeast Asia.
The alliance also faces several serious challenges that threaten to undermine each of the four strengths listed above, which are...
First, the international order that the United States and Japan helped create is in danger. Externally, authoritarian capitalism is spreading as an alternative governance model. Internally, U.S. leaders are questioning the value of alliances and the existing global order. Second, our leaders no longer speak in concert about our shared values. Third, the specter of protectionism is rising. Fourth, military competitors are narrowing the allies' military edge.
One opportunity for deeper cooperation in the long-term is the inclusion of Japan in the _______________________ with the United States, the United Kingdom, Australia, Canada, and New Zealand
Five Eyes intelligence sharing network
Establish a Combined Joint Task Force
If the United States and Japan are to operate more effectively together in a crisis, they should create a combined joint task force for the western Pacific.
Conduct Combined Contingency Planning
If the United States and Japan are to respond quickly to acts of aggression, they will need to have pre- existing response plans and options.
Recommit to an Open Trade and Investment Regime
Japan and the United States should identify initiatives that can advance Asian trade liberalization, set high expectations, and reaffirm critical norms.
Create a Japanese Joint Operations Command
Japan should devolve some of the chief of staff's responsibilities to a subordinate commander. Japan has a more focused force, so the U.S. combatant command structure is the wrong model for Japan to emulate. Instead, we believe Australia's more streamlined command structure would be a better fit.
Prime Minister Shinzo Abe is the leader of what party?
Liberal Democratic Party (LDP)
effects of a smaller population
Lower population means fewer people spending money, and a greater pressure on Japan's GDP and wages. As Japan struggles, foreign investment may seem less favorable.
How did many Japanese-Americans help during the war?
Many Japanese-American soldiers were assigned to the Military Intelligence Service, functioning as interpreters and translators on the Pacific front. (Many also risked their lives)
Does The United States provide development assistance to Japan?
No
Misawa Air Base
Only one base in Japan is both joint and combined
Operate from Combined Bases
Operating separate bases is a warfighting constraint and a political liability; it is a luxury that the alliance can no longer afford. Given the limited number of ports and airfields in Japan, using separate bases limits the flexibility of allied forces.
Why is the alliance's future less clear today than at any other time in the 21st century?
President Donald Trump's transactional "America First" orientation, protectionist policies, and questioning of the value of forward U.S. military presence pose a serious risk to the alliance. There is no good political or economic reason for trade issues to threaten the alliance the way they did three decades ago, and yet they do. While the United States and Japan debate 20th-century tariffs, the 21st-century threats to regional security and prosperity—particularly from China and North Korea—are growing.
What event provided an opportunity for President Trump to assure Japan that the United States was behind Japan "100 percent?"
Pyongyang's accelerated missile launches in 2017
Reinvigorate Trilateral Security Cooperation
Regardless of the direction of future talks between the United States and North Korea, or between the two Koreas, proactive and regularized trilateral policy coordination among Washington, Tokyo, and Seoul at the most senior levels of government will ensure more effective diplomacy and protect the interests of all three allies. The three allies should expand trilateral exercises to counter North Korea's nuclear weapons, ballistic missiles, and proliferation threats
obstacles facing womenomics
Tax Incentives Maternity Harassment Wage Disparity Lack of Daycare Services
Shinzo Abe
The Japanese prime minister
Forge a Broader Regional Economic Strategy
The U.S. failure to sign onto the TPP has dealt a significant setback to U.S.-Japan joint economic statecraft, but it has neither eliminated the underlying logic of the agreement nor closed the door on further cooperation. Both governments need to focus on the regional and global impediments to trade growth. the United States and Japan need to coordinate on a strategy to preserve an open Indo- Pacific in the face of Chinese strategies to dominate telecommunications infrastructure and deny reciprocity on high technology investments.
Expand High-Technology Cooperation
The United States and Japan should improve their coordination on a variety of high-technology issues, including intelligence sharing, cyber, space, and artificial intelligence. Allied leadership in these areas is critical to both nations' economic futures, as well as their continued security.
Launch a Regional Infrastructure Fund
The fact is that Asia needs much more investment in infrastructure, and business is by its nature competitive, but the competition must be open and rules-based.
Why will it will be important for Japanese defense spending to increase?
The growth of Chinese capabilities and ambitions, as well as North Korea's nuclear and missile threats, will require that Japan spend more than 1 percent of gross domestic product on defense.
What does the Japanese public believe about the alliance?
Though the Japanese public believes the Trump administration will have negative impacts on Japan's economy and security, they still support the US-Japan alliance, albeit with a shaken confidence in the United States
What is the alliance's overall purpose?
To protect common interests.
President Trump withdrew from what partnership?
Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP)
aging population impacts
Unauthorized Nursing Homes Corpse Hotels Solitary Death Abandoned Homes, Disappearing Communities
The U.S. Ambassador to Japan is
William F. Hagerty IV
Why is the birth rate in Japan declining?
Women are marrying later. Women have more options besides homemaking. Young professionals in Japan have been family-averse for the past 20 years. Unmarried women are less likely to have kids. Marriage is still the most socially acceptable way to have children.
Are American and Japanese interests closely aligned on most of today's major challenges?
Yes
what is the immediate goal of Abenomics?
boost domestic demand and gross domestic product (GDP) growth while raising inflation to 2 percent
Prime Minister Abe is taking one important step forward by doing what?
casting Japan as a leader on regional economic agreements until the United States finds its own bearings on trade policy.
Shinzo Abe's three-pronged approach, dubbed "Abenomics" and launched in 2013, combines what?
fiscal expansion, monetary easing, and structural reform
The two primary options to fill labor markets
immigration or robots
Within Japan's constitution, there are two paragraphs that make up Article 9, often cited as the _______ clause because it forbids Japan from using military force to start a war.
pacifist
The U.S.-Japan Alliance was strengthened in 2015 through the release of what?
revised U.S.-Japan Defense Guidelines
In picking potential initiatives to fortify the alliance against mounting internal and external challenges the allies should focus on what three imperatives?
strategic effectiveness, political sustainability, and resource efficiency
The Japanese National Police Reserve later became what?
the 110,000 strong Japanese Self Defense Force
The TPP countries minus the United States have agreed to move forward with a new version of the pact, known as
the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership, or CPTPP
U.S. direct investment in Japan is mostly in what sectors?
the finance/insurance, manufacturing, and wholesale sectors
Japanese direct investment in the United States is mostly in what sectors?
the wholesale trade and manufacturing sectors.
Japan could lose more than a _______ of its population over the next fifty years
third
the United States' goods trade deficit with Japan is its _______-largest one in the world
third
Was the majority of Japanese people against revising the constitution?
yes
