This book examines Japan's defense technology, unresolved territorial disputes with neighboring countries, and its trade policy. The author:

• analyzes Japan's cutting-edge defense technologies, including space, cyberspace, and electromagnetic domains, cross-domain operations, and artificial intelligence (AI);
• traces the history and future trajectories of Japan's territorial disputes with Russia, South Korea, and China, and with political actors who have shaped Japan's foreign policies toward the resolution of the Northern Islands/Kurile Islands, the Takeshima/Dokdo Islands, and the Senkaku/Diaoyu Islands;
• studies Japan's policy toward free trade frameworks, especially the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) Agreement, also known as the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP);
• investigates policy implications of political actors for decision-making processes in the government;
• uses case studies to substantiate the applicability of the policy analysis method in the study of contemporary Japanese politics.

This book will be of great interest to scholars and researchers in Japanese politics, Japanese studies, Asian studies, and international relations.

Daisuke Akimoto is an Associate Professor at Tokyo University of Information Sciences. He has an M.A. in Peace and Conflict Studies from the University of Sydney and a Ph.D. in Asian Studies and International Relations from Western Sydney University. As a former Official Secretary at the House of Representatives, Dr. Akimoto has authored several books on Japanese politics, including Japanese Prime Ministers and Their Peace Philosophy (Palgrave 2022).