This seminar aims to develop students’ understanding of Japan's external relations with other nations in the Asia-Pacific region. The topics include Japan’s political, economic and security relations with the neighboring states, Japan’s regional engagement and institution-building, cross-border migration, territorial disputes, and contentious historical issues, among others. On successful completion of the module, students should be able to: (a) identify, understand, and discuss – orally and in writing – major contemporary issues in Japanese external relations; (b) place them in a modern historical context; and (c) analyze them with theoretical frameworks and concepts from international relations.