Featured Student: Ryuji Hattori (MAGR Cohort 2) Writes New Book About Japan’s Cold War, and Celebrates Publication
Lindsay Ryan, Manager of Online Student Experience and Enrollment, interviewed Ryuji Hattori who’s celebrating his book publication.
Lindsay: What inspired you to write this book on Prime Minister Eisaku Sato?
Ryuji: Sato served as Prime Minister of Japan from 1964 to 1972, the longest period before former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe surpassed him. Sato is Abe’s great-uncle.
Lindsay: How did Eisaku Sato change the face of Japanese diplomacy?
Ryuji: During the eight years, Sato’s most notable achievement was the reversion of Okinawa, which Japan had lost during WWII. Sato negotiated Okinawa’s reversion with US President Richard Nixon.
Lindsay: What can we learn from Eisaku Sato in today’s politics?
Ryuji: Okinawa remains a pillar of Asian stability and the US-Japan alliance, with US forces stationed there. Okinawa, in particular, is very close to Taiwan, which China intends to annex, and President Biden has stated that he will defend Taiwan from Chinese annexation.
Lindsay: How has studying Global Risk at JHU attributed to your work?
Ryuji: Global Risk gives me theoretical and empirical insight into politics and the economy. For instance, I am a member of a capstone team that focuses on China’s future and impending crisis. Our team tries to understand China’s policy and economy in a broader context, such as the Belt and Road Initiative and “dept-trap diplomacy,” which allows me to discuss the East Asian situation in depth.
Lindsay: What is the next project you are working on?
Ryuji: Now I’m working on a book about another former Japanese Prime Minister, Yasuhiro Nakasone. From 1982 to 1987, he served as Japanese Prime Minister, and his close relationship with US President Ronald Reagan was one of the best in the history of the US-Japan alliance. I interviewed Nakasone more than 30 times before he passed away in 2019 and published the interviews. As a result, I’m writing his biography in English in order for English readers to understand his life and times. Fighting Japan’s Cold War: Prime Minister Yasuhiro Nakasone and His Times will be the title of the biography.
Check out Ryuji’s books below!
Eisaku Sato, Japanese Prime Minister, 1964-72
