Japan's New Global RoleSince 1980, Japan's international economic position has undergone a historic transformation that is now having significant consequences for Japan, the United States, Europe, and other countries around the world. In this book, Edward J. Lincoln analyzes the major economic changes that occurred in Japan during the 1980s, including macroeconomic shifts, financial deregulation, yen appreciation, rising labor costs brought on by long-term demographic changes, and technological success. Since 1945, the Japanese have shied away from active involvement in most of the complications and problems of the international community. Now, however, a surge in outward foreign investment, particularly direct investment, has involved the nation, more intimately with the outside world than in the past. As a result, Japan has had to cope with some difficult new questions: how to participate meaningfully in the work of the major multilateral economic institutions and the United Nations, how to expand or change the country's foreign aid program, how to take part in the intentional debate on environmental policy, and how deeply to become involved in solving the world's political problems. Lincoln asserts that overcoming the string of insularity and passivism for the years since 1945 will not be easy. He proposes several specific policies that would lead Japan toward a more productive international engagement and suggests that these changes will also serve the objectives of American foreign policy. The 1993 elections and the new coalition government in Japan offer a greater possibility of domestic change; the mood of the nation has shifted away from continued acceptance of the policies of the past. There is now agreater opportunity for the American government to engage in a productive dialogue that can encourage Japan toward a more open and active global role. |
Contents
A Historic Transformation | 1 |
A Higher Profile | 8 |
The Domestic Roots of Change | 16 |
Copyright | |
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Common terms and phrases
abroad activity Agency Ajia American announced Annual Asahi Shimbun ASEAN Asia Asia-Pacific region Asian countries Asian Development Bank behavior bilateral billion chapter China commercial continue Cooperation corporate currency developing countries domestic emerging environmental exports flow focus foreign aid foreign direct investment foreign firms Foreign Ministry Fund global Gulf crisis humanitarian increase Indonesia industrial nations interest intra-industry trade involved Iraq issues Japan Economic Journal Japanese firms Japanese foreign aid Japanese government Japanese investment Japanese Red Cross Kaifu Keidanren labor leadership loans major manufactured imports markets ment Ministry of Finance MITI move Nihon Keizai Shimbun OECF official organizations overseas participation peacekeeping percent personnel political position postwar Prime Minister private sector problems raw materials refugees relative remained rise role share shift South Korea Statistics strong subsidiaries Tokyo U.S. government United Vietnam World Bank
References to this book
Bargaining with Japan: What American Pressure Can and Cannot Do Leonard James Schoppa Limited preview - 1997 |
Japan's International Relations: Politics, Economics and Security Glenn D. Hook No preview available - 2005 |