Social SciencesInternational RelationsPolitical ScienceDiplomacyDiplomatic HistoryInternational SecurityDiplomatic RelationsEconomic DiplomacyInternational CooperationJapanese HistoryWorld War IiWorld WarsDiplomatic History Of JapanEast Asian International RelationsSino-japanese RelationsWorld War Ii History
During the mid-1980s, when Japan s economic might was reaching its zenith, a French diplomat reportedly declared, All I wish is that somehow Japan and the Soviet Union would disappear from the earth. On both counts, his dream has almost come true. Japan now confronts the toughest challenges in its foreign relations since World War II. The way it faces up to them will determine whether Japans meteoric rise to world-power status in the last half-century is transient or sustainable.