The Japan Memo is a monthly podcast series that analyses why Japan matters in today’s regional and global geopolitical landscape. In each episode, Robert Ward of the International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS) Japan Chair Programme, will bring in strategists, experts and practitioners from around the world to examine how Japan is using its diplomatic, economic and military tools to achieve its strategic goals, and what lessons it offers to other countries.
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Japan and Australia with Professor Satake Tomohiko and Genna Lehman
Robert Ward hosts Satake Tomohiko, Professor at the School of International Politics, Economics and Communication (SIPEC) at Aoyama Gakuin University, and Genna Lehman, non-resident fellow at the United States Studies Centre’s Economic Security Programme in Sydney, about Japan-Australia relations.
Together, they explore:
The evolution of Middle Power cooperation between Japan and Australia
The growing cooperation in defence industry between Japan and Australia
Japan’s recent successful rare-earth project with Australia’s Lynas
Future Japan-Australia cooperation
Recommended readings from our guests:
Yoshihide Soeya, Masayuki Tadokoro, and David A. Welch. (Eds.). Japan as a 'Normal Country'?: A Nation in Search of Its Place in the World (https://muse.jhu.edu/book/105677) (Toronto: University of Tront Press, 2011).
Michael Green, Line of Advantage: Japan’s Grand Strategy in the Era of Abe Shinzō. (https://cup.columbia.edu/book/line-of-advantage/9780231555630/) (New York: Columbia University Press, 2022).
We hope you enjoy the episode. Please follow, rate, and subscribe to Japan Memo on your preferred podcast platform. If you have any comments or questions, please contact us at japanchair@iiss.org (mailto:japanchair@iiss.org).
Date recorded: 13 August 2026
Japan Memo is recorded and produced at the IISS in London.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy (https://acast.com/privacy) for more information.
14 Aug 2026
Japan’s intelligence reforms with Professor Kotani Ken
Robert Ward hosts Professor Kotani Ken, Professor of College of Risk Management at Nihon University, for an in-depth discussion on the recent reforms of Japan’s intelligence capabilities.
Together, they explore:
The significance of the recent setting up of Japan’s first National Intelligence Bureau and National Intelligence Council
Japan’s strengths and weaknesses in intelligence capabilities
Japan’s further cooperation with foreign intelligence agencies
Upcoming related intelligence policies and reforms
Recommended readings from our guests:
Brad Williams, Japanese Foreign Intelligence and Grand Strategy: From the Cold War to the Abe Era (https://press.georgetown.edu/Book/Japanese-Foreign-Intelligence-and-Grand-Strategy), (Washington DC: Georgetown University Press, 2021), 280pp.
We hope you enjoy the episode. Please follow, rate, and subscribe to Japan Memo on your preferred podcast platform. If you have any comments or questions, please contact us at japanchair@iiss.org (mailto:japanchair@iiss.org).
Date recorded: 31 July 2026
Japan Memo is recorded and produced at the IISS in London.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy (https://acast.com/privacy) for more information.
6 Jul 2026
Japan and the Gulf with Professor Ikeuchi Satoshi and Sakanashi Sachi
Robert Ward hosts Ikeuchi Satoshi, Professor of the Division of Religion and Global Security at the Research Centre for Advanced Science and Technology (RCAST) of the University of Tokyo, and Sakanashi Sachi, the Board Member and Director of the Japanese Institute of Middle Eastern Economies (JIME) Centre at the Institute of Energy Economics, Japan (IEEJ) for an in-depth discussion on the current state and future direction of Japan-Gulf relations.
Together, they explore:
· A unique historical and diplomatic relationship between Japan and Iran
· The impact of the closure of the Strait of Hormuz on Japan’s energy security
· Japan’s future strategy to secure its energy supply amid geopolitical turbulence
· Japan’s role in the Middle East and Gulf region
Recommended readings from our guests:
· Mohammed Soliman, West Asia: A new American grand strategy in the Middle East (https://www.politybooks.com/bookdetail?book_slug=west-asia-a-new-american-grand-strategy-in-the-middle-east--9781509568376). (Cambridge: Polity Press, 2026)
· Mimaki Seiko, (Ed), American war and global crisis: The consequences of the invasion of Iran (Tokyo; Iwanami-Shinsho, 2026) [三牧聖子 編『「アメリカの戦争」と世界危機 イラン侵攻は何をもたらすのか』(東京：岩波新書、2026)]
We hope you enjoy the episode. Please follow, rate, and subscribe to Japan Memo on your preferred podcast platform. If you have any comments or questions, please contact us at japanchair@iiss.org (mailto:japanchair@iiss.org).
Date recorded: 22 June 2026
Japan Memo is recorded and produced at the IISS in London.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy (https://acast.com/privacy) for more information.
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YouTube views
3,399,888
Score snapshot 15 Sept 2025
Apple Podcasts (US)
4.6 / 5
8 ratings
Spotify
4.6 / 5
9 ratings
Podcast Authority Score: 61 / 100
A composite of feed quality, social presence, YouTube performance and engagement. Read the methodology.
Quality
52
Social presence
0
YouTube
93
Engagement
81
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