Japan’s Policy in the Middle East: Challenges and Prospects for Cooperation with Europe

On 29 January 2024, the Japan Chair Cluster hosted a delegation from the Research Centre for Advanced Science and Technology Open Laboratory for Emergence Strategies (ROLES) at the University of Tokyo. The delegation was led by Professor Satoshi Ikeuchi, the Director of ROLES and leading Japanese specialist on the Middle East. This discussion focused on Japan’s evolving policy and engagement in the Middle East, the conflict in Gaza, as well as possible opportunities for cooperation between Japan and Europe in the Middle East.

“Japan Chair Cluster” meetings bring together Brussels-based experts and policy practitioners from the EU institutions, NATO, as well as relevant Embassy representatives interested in Japan and the broader Indo-Pacific region. The Cluster meets on an ad hoc basis when experts, academics and officials from the region visit Brussels, presenting their research and sharing their insights in a closed-door, informal fashion. The aim of the meetings is to inform the European policy community, raise awareness and steer the debate for regional security challenges, as well as to facilitate inter-personal exchanges to support Europe’s engagement with Japan and the Indo-Pacific.