Japan Chair Forum: What Americans Think of Japan

The Japan Chair at CSIS and The Chicago Council on Global Affairs present:

What Americans Think of Japan
Analysis of a Survey by The Chicago Council on Global Affairs

Panelists:
Rachel Bronson
Vice President, Programs and Studies, The Chicago Council on Global Affairs

Keiko Iizuka
Visiting Fellow, Center for Northeast Asian Policy Studies, The Brookings Institution

Moderated by
Michael J. Green
Senior Adviser and Japan Chair, CSIS
Associate Professor, Georgetown University

As Americans prepare to go to the polls to elect their next President and a new Congress, events in Asia have ranked behind more pressing issues such as the economy, energy prices and the war in Iraq. While the U.S. Presidential candidates have gone out of their way to demonstrate their fealty to the U.S.-Japan relationship, many Japanese analysts and commentators have worried that the United States is losing interest in Japan, especially with the rising importance of China. According to a study by The Chicago Council on Global Affairs, the views of the American public suggest that rather than "Japan passing," the rise of China is increasing the importance of the U.S.-Japan alliance. Americans continue to see Japan as an influential partner in the international system.