- School of East Asian Studies
University of Sheffield
6-8 Shearwood Road
Sheffield S10 2TD
UK - 01142228437
Hugo Dobson
The University of Sheffield, School of East Asian Studies, Faculty Member
- I was awarded my PhD from the School of East Asian Studies at the University of Sheffield in 1998 for a thesis that e... moreI was awarded my PhD from the School of East Asian Studies at the University of Sheffield in 1998 for a thesis that explored Japan’s participation in United Nations-sponsored peacekeeping operations. I have worked as a research fellow in the International Centre for Comparative Law and Politics at the University of Tokyo (1997-1999) and lecturer in the international relations of East Asia in the Department of Politics and International Relations at the University of Kent (1999-2000). I returned to the School of East Asian Studies in 2001 as a lecturer in Japan’s international relations, becoming a senior lecturer in 2005 and a professor in 2009.
My research interests are broadly divided into two strands. The first strand focuses upon Japan's role in international relations, multilateral organisations and global governance, especially the G8 and G20. The second strand explores the role of images in shaping our understanding of international relations and Japan’s role in the world, from postage stamps and logos to TV programmes such as The Simpsons.
I have been the recipient of a number of research grants and has been invited to teach and research at various institutions around the world including the University of Tokyo, Hosei University in Tokyo, Zurich University and Charles University in Prague.edit
EMERGING POWERS IN GLOBAL GOVERNANCE Lessons from the Heiligendamm Process Andrew F. Cooper and Agata Antkiewicz, editors Waterloo: Wilfrid Laurier University Press, 2008. 392pp, $39.95 paper (ISBN 978-1-55458-057-6)Ever since the prime... more
EMERGING POWERS IN GLOBAL GOVERNANCE Lessons from the Heiligendamm Process Andrew F. Cooper and Agata Antkiewicz, editors Waterloo: Wilfrid Laurier University Press, 2008. 392pp, $39.95 paper (ISBN 978-1-55458-057-6)Ever since the prime ministers, chancellors, and presidents ofthe six leading global economies originally met in the Parisian château of Rambouillet in November 1975, expansion of this select group - known today as the group of 8, or the G8 - has been a topic of discussion for the leaders themselves in addition to policymakers and committed summit- watchers. These summits, it has been argued, are more productive when the membership is limited; however, this raises questions surrounding the credibility of a self-appointed and select grouping like the G8 to decide responses to global issues. Attempts to chart a path between the Scylla of legitimacy and the Charybdis of effectiveness through reform of its membership have included bringing Canada into its embrace as a G7 the second time it met in 1976, in addition to the European Union in 1977 and Russia, in a drawn-out fashion, during the 1990s to create the G8 we know today. As a result, it could be argued that this modem-day recasting ofthe Concert of Europe has demonstrated greater flexibility than the United Nations security council in pursuing reform. However, in the first decade ofthe new millennium, the question of how to accommodate emerging powers at the top table of summitry has become the central issue that defines the future ofthe summit process.The traditional solution to this "double crisis of legitimacy and efficiency" has been to simply add new members on an ad hoc basis and the creation of a G9 has been posited as one solution to engage with the hard case of China (2). However, other emerging powers - Brazil, India, Mexico, and South Africa - have equally valid claims to a seat at the summit table and alongside China form a G5. The Heiligendamm process, launched at the German-hosted G8 summit of 2007, is an attempt to create an informal dialogue between the G8 and this G5 on the core issues of global governance with the ever-present possibility of reforming the G8 through the creation of a G13. The story does not end there. A group of 16 countries known as the "major economies meeting" adds Australia, Indonesia, and South Korea to the 13 to form a G16 to address the specific issues of energy security and climate change. And since 2008 the G20 has metamorphosed from a regular meeting of finance ministers and bank governors to a biannual meeting of leaders charged with forging a common response to the global economic crisis. The result is what has Roy Culpeper, president of the North-South Institute, has dubbed a "gaggle of Gs".This timely and welcome edited volume is an attempt to explore the second of these possible configurations: the Heiligendamm process. It achieves this task in 14 detailed yet easily digestible chapters that set the scene initially by focusing on the conceptual and historical background to the restructuring of the G8 and the development of the Heiligendamm process. …
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Japan and Britain in the Contemporary World Japan and Britain in the Contemporary World provides up-to-date analyses of these two countries in terms of economics, politics, security and identity on the global, regional, subnational and... more
Japan and Britain in the Contemporary World Japan and Britain in the Contemporary World provides up-to-date analyses of these two countries in terms of economics, politics, security and identity on the global, regional, subnational and civic levels. The book moves beyond an analysis ...
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This book analyses Japan's international relations and participation in the multilateral forum, the G8, since its creation in 1975. The author explores the motivation of the Japanese government and non-governmental actor's aims... more
This book analyses Japan's international relations and participation in the multilateral forum, the G8, since its creation in 1975. The author explores the motivation of the Japanese government and non-governmental actor's aims and objectives and examines how and to what extent they have been achieved. Presenting a wealth of new research this theoretically informed book will be of interest to those studying interntional relations and Japanese politics.
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Japan and United Nations Peacekeeping In response to the Second Gulf War of 1991, Japan has embarked upon the task of building its role both within the United Nations and in United Nations-sponsored peacekeeping operations. Yet, for a... more
Japan and United Nations Peacekeeping In response to the Second Gulf War of 1991, Japan has embarked upon the task of building its role both within the United Nations and in United Nations-sponsored peacekeeping operations. Yet, for a traditionally anti-militarist nation, ...
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This article explores the ways in which Japan manages its bilateral relationship with the USA. It contributes to the extant literature on Japan–USA bilateral relations by focusing particularly upon the management of this core bilateral... more
This article explores the ways in which Japan manages its bilateral relationship with the USA. It contributes to the extant literature on Japan–USA bilateral relations by focusing particularly upon the management of this core bilateral relationship from a Japanese perspective and within two mechanisms of global governance, the G8 and G20 summits, collectively referred to as GX summitry. Specifically, the
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... Acronyms ABM Anti-Ballistic Missile AFTA Asian Free Trade Area APEC Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation ARF ASEAN Regional Forum ASDF Air Self-Defense Forces ASEAN+3 Association of Southeast Asian Nations plus Japan, China, and South... more
... Acronyms ABM Anti-Ballistic Missile AFTA Asian Free Trade Area APEC Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation ARF ASEAN Regional Forum ASDF Air Self-Defense Forces ASEAN+3 Association of Southeast Asian Nations plus Japan, China, and South Korea BDS Boost ...
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Over recent years Ashgate has carved out a reputation for itself as a high-profile publisher, especially through the salience of its numerous series. I have found both the Critical Security series and the G8 and Global Governance series... more
Over recent years Ashgate has carved out a reputation for itself as a high-profile publisher, especially through the salience of its numerous series. I have found both the Critical Security series and the G8 and Global Governance series to be of particular interest. However, one of the ...
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The Group of 20 (G20) has a proven record of multi-stakeholder engagement, exem plified by groups such as the Business 20 (B20), Civil Society 20 (C20), and Think 20 (T20). However, the evolution of this engagement has been ad hoc, the... more
The Group of 20 (G20) has a proven record of multi-stakeholder engagement, exem plified by groups such as the Business 20 (B20), Civil Society 20 (C20), and Think 20 (T20). However, the evolution of this engagement has been ad hoc, the scope limited, the impact inchoate, and the results inconsistent. This brief calls for a systematic reconsideration and expansion of the G20’s multi-stakeholder engagement, first by an audit of existing structures. In addition, a “light-touch” secretariat should be established to better coordinate state and non-state actors. This way, both the legitimacy and effectiveness of the G20 could be increased.
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Japan has traditionally assumed the role of regional representative in the leading mechanisms of global economic governance as the leading economic power in East Asia, historically speaking, and the only non-European/North American member... more
Japan has traditionally assumed the role of regional representative in the leading mechanisms of global economic governance as the leading economic power in East Asia, historically speaking, and the only non-European/North American member of the G7/8. However, the rise of the G20, the inclusion of a number of Asian countries, and the supposed eclipse of the G7/8 represent considerable challenges to Japan’s role in global affairs and its position as a contemporary great power. So far, Japan has responded by making significant contributions to the Global Financial and Economic Crisis and the G20, but these contributions have at times been qualified and even contradictory. This article will explore the external and internal factors that have both encouraged and limited Japan’s behavior within the G20 to date.
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This book provides a welcome addition to an excellent series of studies published by the Washington-based United States Institute of Peace, which has thus far included expositions of Chinese, Russian, North Korean and German negotiating... more
This book provides a welcome addition to an excellent series of studies published by the Washington-based United States Institute of Peace, which has thus far included expositions of Chinese, Russian, North Korean and German negotiating behaviour. This reviewer has ...
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Over recent years, media, academic, and policy-makers' attention has focused on changes in the global order from a unipolar to a multipolar world. The emergence of the Group of 20 (G20) since 2008 as the ‘premier forum for... more
Over recent years, media, academic, and policy-makers' attention has focused on changes in the global order from a unipolar to a multipolar world. The emergence of the Group of 20 (G20) since 2008 as the ‘premier forum for international economic cooperation’, which includes a number of developed and developing countries, and its ‘eclipse’ of the Group of 8 (G8) summit are acknowledged as some of the most salient symptoms of this shift. This article takes the intensive period of ‘G’ summitry between 2008 and 2011 as a pertinent case study to begin to explore the concrete responses of key protagonists to this reconfiguration of the architecture of global governance specifically and thereby the recent shift in the global order more broadly. In the specific case of Japan, widely assumed to be a declining power, the article highlights both consistency and change in the responses of and strategies employed by Japanese policy-makers within ‘G’ summitry. Various theoretical positions can account for this to differing degrees which also bring into relief the ultimately contradictory trajectory of Japan's response to the changing global order.
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Regardless of the historical period or field of inquiry, one of the most frequently asked questions about Japan in almost any sphere of activity has been, Is Japan changing? While this question has been posed ad nauseam, a truly... more
Regardless of the historical period or field of inquiry, one of the most frequently asked questions about Japan in almost any sphere of activity has been, Is Japan changing? While this question has been posed ad nauseam, a truly convincing answer has yet to be made. 'Little ...
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This article has four aims: (1) to supplement an extant literature on Japan’s role in the G7/8 summit process by cataloguing events during the 2003 Group of Eight (G8) Summit1 held in Evian, France, from the Japanese government’s point of... more
This article has four aims: (1) to supplement an extant literature on Japan’s role in the G7/8 summit process by cataloguing events during the 2003 Group of Eight (G8) Summit1 held in Evian, France, from the Japanese government’s point of view; (2) to highlight the main actors involved in this process, their objectives, and the degree of success in their ability to achieve these objectives at Evian; (3) to demonstrate how the Japanese government has instrumentalized a multilateral forum, namely the G8, in order to pursue the resolution of what is essentially a bilateral issue – the abduction of Japanese citizens by North Korean agents (racchi jiken) – a strategy that it adopted in the 1990s unsuccessfully to seek resolution of the Northern Territories’ dispute, but is becoming increasingly evident in other areas of its foreign policy; and (4) to review Japan’s traditional role in the summit as representative of Asia and discuss whether this will come under threat with the limited, b...
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It’s not often you hear or read this combination of words in the same sentence but surely this year’s summit meeting of the Group of 8 (G8) leaders will be etched on people’s memories for generations to come. Nobody could have predicted... more
It’s not often you hear or read this combination of words in the same sentence but surely this year’s summit meeting of the Group of 8 (G8) leaders will be etched on people’s memories for generations to come. Nobody could have predicted the cataclysmic events that unfolded on the northernmost island of Japan in the summer of 2008: the city of Sapporo attacked by the vengeful space monster Guilala; the leaders of the G8 countries united in their efforts to destroy the creature; former Prime Minister Koizumi Junichiro ended recent speculation and returned to take over the reigns of power in a time of crises; and the G8 leaders taken hostage by Kim Jong-Il. For an annual diplomatic event that is often portrayed as little more than a meaningless ceremony, this has to have been one of the most unforgettable summits in its thirty-three history. At least that’s what happened if you only watched the highly amusing monster movie Girara no GyakushÅ«: Toyako Samitto Kiki Ippatsu (Guilala Strik...
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eprints@whiterose.ac.uk https://eprints.whiterose.ac.uk/ Reuse Unless indicated otherwise, fulltext items are protected by copyright with all rights reserved. The copyright exception in section 29 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 allows the making of a single copy solely for the purpose of non-commercial research or private study within the limits of fair dealing. The publisher or other rights-holder may allow further reproduction and re-use of this version refer to the White Rose Research Online record for this item. Where records identify the publisher as the copyright holder, users can verify any specific terms of use on the publisher’s website.
1. History and Development 2. Organization and Functioning 3. Perspectives of Member States 4. Achievements and Challenges 5. Criticisms and Challenges 6. Future Directions
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This paper focuses on how energy issues and climate change are addressed at the multilateral level, specifically by the Group of 8 (G8) and Group of 20 (G20). It will trace the development, trajectory, successes and failures of global... more
This paper focuses on how energy issues and climate change are addressed at the multilateral level, specifically by the Group of 8 (G8) and Group of 20 (G20). It will trace the development, trajectory, successes and failures of global summitry in addressing these issues. In addition, it will explore Japan’s contributions to these processes, as well as its motivations.
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A growing network of international institutions governs global politics. Most international institutions, such as the Food and Agriculture Organization and the World Tourism Organization, are tailored to exploit the known; they address... more
A growing network of international institutions governs global politics. Most international institutions, such as the Food and Agriculture Organization and the World Tourism Organization, are tailored to exploit the known; they address enduring or well-understood international problems that fit into existing categories. These institutions cluster around familiar topics ranging from food security and tourism to the environment and trade. However, our complex world is a breeding ground for new issues, posing a unique challenge for these institutions. Think of the array of questions raised by artificial intelligence (AI), the transnational diffusion of the ‘me too’ movement, or the undermining effects created by the rise of populism. Emerging issues like these concern the unknown; they are often unprecedented, span multiple issue areas in their scope or in their consequences, and can be disruptive. Looking at variation in institutional formality and membership heterogeneity, our focus is on identifying the institutional forms that are best suited to meet the challenges posed by emerging issues that arise out of complexity. While no institution is perfectly adapted to this class of problem, we argue that informal institutions with like-minded memberships are better suited to tackling emerging issues than their formal and heterogenous counterparts for two reasons. First, informal institutions are flexible in their mandates, enabling them to tackle emerging problems that lie outside the scope of formal institutions. Second, when informal institutions have likeminded memberships, they are quicker to reach consensus and address these problems by formulating initial solutions, delegating to other institutions, or suggesting the creation of new institutions. Using the example of the G7, we show how informal institutions have addressed emerging issues in the past, and discuss how they can deal with them in the future.
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The Group of 20 (G20) has a proven record of multi-stakeholder engagement, exemplified by groups such as the Business 20 (B20), Civil Society 20 (C20), and Think 20 (T20). However, the evolution of this engagement has been ad hoc, the... more
The Group of 20 (G20) has a proven record of multi-stakeholder engagement, exemplified by groups such as the Business 20 (B20), Civil Society 20 (C20), and Think 20 (T20). However, the evolution of this engagement has been ad hoc, the scope limited, the impact inchoate, and the results inconsistent. This brief calls for a systematic reconsideration and expansion of the G20’s multi-stakeholder engagement, first by an audit of existing structures. In addition, a “light-touch” secretariat should be established to better coordinate state and non-state actors. This way, both the legitimacy and effectiveness of the G20 could be increased.
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The G7 should address new, unprecedented and highly disruptive issues that characterise our complex world, rather than well‐understood international problems that fit into existing categories. We argue that the G7 can do this by playing... more
The G7 should address new, unprecedented and highly disruptive issues that characterise our complex world, rather than well‐understood international problems that fit into existing categories. We argue that the G7 can do this by playing to its strengths – informality and like‐mindedness in particular – in addressing emerging and transversal issues such as Artificial Intelligence (AI) and cryptocurrencies.
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Pedagogy of Democracy: Feminism and the Cold War in the US Occupation of Japan Patti Duncan Feminist Formations, Volume 22, Number 1, Spring 2010, pp. 204-209 (Review) ... Philadelphia, PA: Temple University Press, 2008, 226 pp., $54.50... more
Pedagogy of Democracy: Feminism and the Cold War in the US Occupation of Japan Patti Duncan Feminist Formations, Volume 22, Number 1, Spring 2010, pp. 204-209 (Review) ... Philadelphia, PA: Temple University Press, 2008, 226 pp., $54.50 hardcover. Patti Duncan ...
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... Costa describes the natural and built environment of the Sultanate: the great variety of conditions which its people encounter, from harsh desert in the north, the uplands of the Jebal Akhdar and the lush, monsoon-washed regions of... more
... Costa describes the natural and built environment of the Sultanate: the great variety of conditions which its people encounter, from harsh desert in the north, the uplands of the Jebal Akhdar and the lush, monsoon-washed regions of the south. ...
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In 1993 when two Japanese nationals were killed in Cambodia while assisting the United Nations mission to rebuild that unfortunate country, Junichiro Koizumi, then minister of postal service and telecommunications and later more famously... more
In 1993 when two Japanese nationals were killed in Cambodia while assisting the United Nations mission to rebuild that unfortunate country, Junichiro Koizumi, then minister of postal service and telecommunications and later more famously prime minister of Japan, stated that ...
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Page 1. 166 Book Reviews Thomas U. Berger, Mike M. Mochizuki, and Jistuo Tsuchiyama, eds., Japan in Inter-national Politics: The Foreign Policies of an Adaptive State. Boulder, CO: Lynne Rienner, 2007. 349 pp. $24.50. Reviewed by Hugo... more
Page 1. 166 Book Reviews Thomas U. Berger, Mike M. Mochizuki, and Jistuo Tsuchiyama, eds., Japan in Inter-national Politics: The Foreign Policies of an Adaptive State. Boulder, CO: Lynne Rienner, 2007. 349 pp. $24.50. Reviewed by Hugo Dobson, University of Sheffield ...