An interview with Akio Takahara - China's domestic politics
A closed roundtable about China's domestic politics of reform, governance and power struggle was held by the IIR on January 25, 2017. The main speaker, a Japanese expert in the field of China's foreign policy and economic relations, and our honourable guest, Professor Akio Takahara, kindly agreed to answer a few questions on camera after the event: How strong is Xi Jinping´s position in China? Can his position be affected by the Chinese economic transformation or by any internal political issues in China? And how does Japan see the Chinese “One Belt, One Road” strategy? Watch the exclusive interview with Akio Takahara to hear his qualified answers and thought-provoking comments on these issues.
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G_qSEudiCtg[/youtube]
Professor Akio Takahara received his D.Phil. in 1988 from the University of Sussex, and later spent several years as a Visiting Scholar at the Consulate General of Japan in Hong Kong (1989-1991), the Japanese Embassy in Beijing (1996-1998), the Fairbank Center for East Asian Research, Harvard University (2005-2006), and the School of International Studies, Peking University (2014-2015).
Before joining the University of Tokyo, he taught at J. F. Oberlin University (1991-95) and Rikkyo University (1995-2005). He also served as a Programme Officer of the Sasakawa Peace Foundation (1988-1989), a Member of the Governing Body of the Institute of Development Studies, UK (1999-2003), a President of the Japan Association for Asian Studies (2009-2011), and a Secretary General of the New Japan-China Friendship Committee for the 21st Century (2009-2014).
He currently serves as a senior fellow of the Tokyo Foundation, an adjunct fellow of the Japan Institute of International Affairs, and a senior fellow of the Japan Forum on International Relations.
