The new central front: Japan’s special role in the West’s strategic rivalry with China
Japan’s approach to economic security provides valuable lessons for Europe about effectively navigating the challenges posed by a rising China
Experts & Staff
Elli-Katharina Pohlkamp
ECFR Alumni · Visiting Fellow
Areas of expertise
Japanese foreign relations, security and defense policy, Japan’s strategy in the Indo-Pacific region, EU-Japan relations
Languages
German, English, Greek, French (conversational), Japanese (conversational)
Biography
Dr. Elli-Katharina Pohlkamp was a Visiting Fellow of the Asia Programme at the European Council on Foreign Relations. She previously worked as a Japan Analyst based in Munich, as a Policy Fellow at the Progressives Zentrum Berlin and as a Japan Fellow at Agora Strategy Group, where she focused on EU-Japan relations and Japanese foreign policy and security in East Asia.
She also was a Research Assistant and a Forum Ebenhausen-Scholar at the German Institute for International and Security Affairs (SWP Berlin) and worked at the German Institute for Japanese Studies in Tokyo, as a PhD Scholar.
She holds a PhD from the University of Tübingen, Germany, and has published widely on topics related to Japan’s foreign- and security policy, Sino-Japanese relations and security in the Asia-Pacific region.
The weight of history: Why the recent thaw in South Korea-Japan relations may not last
A recent thaw in ties between the EU’s two most important partners in East Asia is a potential game-changer for a region fraught with geopolitical danger – but complex domestic politics in both countries may yet derail a truly long-lasting rapprochement
Setting the course: Japan’s new security strategy
Japan’s new security strategy sends a powerful signal to current and future allies – and to possible adversaries
Tokyo drift: War in Europe and Japan’s shifting strategy
Japan has clearly signalled that it will not stand on the sidelines of global crises. It is now committed to bold diplomacy and the protection of the rules-based international order.
Russia’s escalation in Ukraine: Views from Asia
Asia’s three largest powers all have a stake in the Russia-Ukraine crisis. China hopes to change the global order, Japan aims to resist this effort, and India is eager not to alienate Russia or the West.
Net positive: Europe, Japan, and the benefits of small-scale cyber-security cooperation
Japan supports an open, free, and secure internet, as well as the application of international norms to state activities in cyberspace. The country should be the primary focus of EU efforts to develop a shared cyber-security agenda in the Indo-Pacific.
Tough dove: Japan’s China policy under its next leader
Japan’s citizens and leaders across the political spectrum are increasingly aware that China poses a security threat. The country’s next prime minister is unlikely to make a dramatic change to the China policy set by his predecessors.
The geopolitics of cybersecurity
Dr Janka Oertel discusses with Dr Elli-Katharina Pohlkamp and Bonji Ohara the cooperation in the field of cybersecurity between two of the US closest allies
Why cyber security should be a key part of Europe’s Indo-Pacific strategy
Making cyber security an integral part of a European approach to the Indo-Pacific could provide a framework for cooperation with EU partners in the region
20 Jan
Europe & Japan relations after the US elections
How will the new administration impact US Indo-Pacific strategy and China policy?
Articles
The new central front: Japan’s special role in the West’s strategic rivalry with China
Japan’s approach to economic security provides valuable lessons for Europe about effectively navigating the challenges posed by a rising China
The weight of history: Why the recent thaw in South Korea-Japan relations may not last
A recent thaw in ties between the EU’s two most important partners in East Asia is a potential game-changer for a region fraught with geopolitical danger – but complex domestic politics in both countries may yet derail a truly long-lasting rapprochement
Setting the course: Japan’s new security strategy
Japan’s new security strategy sends a powerful signal to current and future allies – and to possible adversaries
Tokyo drift: War in Europe and Japan’s shifting strategy
Japan has clearly signalled that it will not stand on the sidelines of global crises. It is now committed to bold diplomacy and the protection of the rules-based international order.
Russia’s escalation in Ukraine: Views from Asia
Asia’s three largest powers all have a stake in the Russia-Ukraine crisis. China hopes to change the global order, Japan aims to resist this effort, and India is eager not to alienate Russia or the West.
Net positive: Europe, Japan, and the benefits of small-scale cyber-security cooperation
Japan supports an open, free, and secure internet, as well as the application of international norms to state activities in cyberspace. The country should be the primary focus of EU efforts to develop a shared cyber-security agenda in the Indo-Pacific.
Tough dove: Japan’s China policy under its next leader
Japan’s citizens and leaders across the political spectrum are increasingly aware that China poses a security threat. The country’s next prime minister is unlikely to make a dramatic change to the China policy set by his predecessors.
Why cyber security should be a key part of Europe’s Indo-Pacific strategy
Making cyber security an integral part of a European approach to the Indo-Pacific could provide a framework for cooperation with EU partners in the region
After Abe: How Japan’s new prime minister should handle diplomacy
Shinzo Abe’s aggressive and successful diplomacy has helped make Japan a pillar of liberal democracy and a beneficiary of the rules-based international order. His successor has vowed to protect these interests.
Podcasts
The geopolitics of cybersecurity
Dr Janka Oertel discusses with Dr Elli-Katharina Pohlkamp and Bonji Ohara the cooperation in the field of cybersecurity between two of the US closest allies
Events
20 Jan
Europe & Japan relations after the US elections
How will the new administration impact US Indo-Pacific strategy and China policy?
In the media
With the war in Ukraine, Germany has entered a new era in security and defence policy, but this does not change Germany’s interests in the Indo-Pacific
Elli Pohlkamp comments on Germany’s engagement in the Indo-Pacific
Dr. Elli-Katharina Pohlkamp elaborates on German and Japanese Defense Spending in light of the war in Ukraine
He [Kadisha] will keep the noticeably harder line against Beijing because I believe a reverse course will not be well accepted domestically as well as internationally
Elli-Katharina Pohlkamp aruges that while PM Kishida has stressed that dialogue with China will be necessary, it is unlikely that he will dramatically change the course set by his predecessors
Motegi’s reappointment symbolizes both continuity in terms of foreign policy, “but at the same time keeping and satisfying [Kishida’s] political capital within the Liberal Democratic Party
Elli-Katharina Pohlkamp comments on the reappointment of Toshimitsu Motegi as Japan’s foreign minister
The China factor is definitely encouraging the enhancement of security ties between Europe and Japan
Dr. Elli-Katharina Pohlkamp comments on Germany, France and Britain’s plans to increase their military presence in the Indo-Pacific region.