About the Lecture:

On November 1^st 2017, the fourth administration of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe was inaugurated with political capital gained from the fifth consecutive victory in a national election. As the ruling coalition has won a far larger majority, Prime Minister Abe was able to harness sufficient political capital to tackle various foreign policy and security challenges, such as deepening the Japan-U.S. alliance and strengthening cooperation with other strategically important countries; and dealing with the North Korea crisis and the rise of China. This lecture reviews the most current Foreign and Security Policies of Japan under the Abe Administration in light of the new security situation surrounding the region.

About the Speaker:

Katsuyuki Kawai is the Special Advisor for Foreign Affairs to Shinzo ABE, President of the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) and a member of the House of Representatives. Prior to the current appointment, he had served as the Special Advisor to Prime Minister Shinzo ABE and Chairman of the Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs at the House of Representatives. Other appointments include Acting Chairman of Ministerial Meeting on Economic Strategy for Africa at the Prime Minister’s Office and State Minister for Justice. Under Prime Minister ABE’s intention, Mr. KAWAI has made extensive overseas visits in the past four and half years. Mr. KAWAI started his political career in 1991 as a member of the Hiroshima Prefectural Assembly. He was elected to the House of Representatives in 1996 and is currently serving his 7^th term.  He was born in Hiroshima and received his undergraduate education from Keio University.