Mary Kissel writes that the reform agenda of the opposition DPJ party and its leader, Yukio Hatoyama, should not be carried out at the expense of a strong alliance with the United States.

Tobias Harris explains how Ichirio Ozawa, former Democratic Party of Japan president, is behind the rise of the recently victorious opposition party.

Yukio Hatoyama, head of the victorious Democratic Party of Japan, outlines his party's philosophy of tempering the pitfalls of market capitalism with the French concept of fraternity, and of moving toward regional integration and collective security in Asia.

Todd Crowell asks, why does Japan obsess over North Korean kidnappings?

This article looks at missile defense in Japan.

This Japan Center for Economic Research report analyzes how the U.S. financial crisis has affected Japanese financial institutions.

The automotive industry of Japan is leading the eco-friendly car race by long strides. Their turbocharged lead puts them ahead of the otehr car manufacturing industries.

This piece provides statistics on global military expenditures for selected countries in 2007 and 2006.

Asia-Pacific reporter Marcus Gee says that Japan's effort to control its energy use is impressive.

Dilip Hiro says that countries must handle rising oil prices with energy efficiency and alternative sources.

A roundup of which countries produced and installed the most photovoltaic (PV) or solar cells, which convert the sun's light directly to electricity, in 2008.

A CRS Report for Congress explores the challenges and opportunities that the United States faces when pursuing bilateral and multilateral ties with Japan, Australia, and India.

This article from the Power and Interest News Report discusses India's foreign policy objectives in East and South East Asia.

This report outlines the findings of a bipartisan panel of Asia specialists co-chaired by Richard L. Armitage and Joseph Nye. The report highlights major trends in Asia and provides the panel's comprehensive analysis with security and economic policy recommendations.

A panel discussion including Akira Chiba of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Japan and Randy Schriver, founding partner of Armitage International and former senior country director at the Department of Defense for China and Taiwan .

Japan has actively contributed to the Bush administration's war on terrorism, going far beyond the financial support it provided during the first Gulf War in 1991 and testing the limits of postwar constitutional prohibitions on the deployment of military forces overseas. This has led some observers to suggest that Japan might be positioning itself to become a more active supporter of U.S. global strategy, a "Britain of Asia." This study from the East West Center challenges this view and finds that less has changed in Japan's overseas deployments than is often claimed.

Unlike capital punishment in the United States, Japan's death penalty is applied regularly. Charles Lane provides a look at a the secretive world of Japanese capital justice.

The MIT Joint Program on the Science and Policy of Global Change reports that the full utilization of international emission trading by Japan reduces the carbon price, welfare loss, and impact on its energy-intensive exports.

Chief Cabinet Secretary of Japan, Yasuo Fukuda, incites controversy and criticism with his comments on Japan's longstanding nuclear policy.