At the Ninth Annual Gulf Studies Forum organized by the Arab Center for Research & Policy Studies, Doha.
Guest Speakers
Professor Abdullah Baabood
On Sunday, 23 October 2022, Professor Abdullah Baabood chaired the fourth session on “The Future of Relations between Japan and the Arab Gulf States in Light of the Ukraine Crisis” at the Ninth Annual Gulf Studies Forum organized by the Arab Center for Research & Policy Studies, Doha.
The first speaker, Kazuto Matsuda, presented “Relations between Japan and GCC States from the Japanese Perspective,” which argued the interpretation of the increasing turn of GCC states to the East as a desire for greater economic and trade cooperation has marginalised and disregarded Tokyo’s perspective on relations between Japan and Arab Gulf states. He concludes that Tokyo’s proactive turn towards the GCC states indicates that it is willing to strengthen long-term cooperation with Gulf states.
Kazuo Sunaga, presented “Japan’s Foreign Policy towards Arab Gulf States in Light of the Ukrainian Crisis,” arguing that the Ukrainian crisis has alerted Japan to the growing strategic importance of Arab Gulf states. Koichiro Tanaka followed with his paper, “The Impact of the Ukrainian Crisis on Energy Security in Japan and the Role of Arab Gulf States,” which examines the impact of the Ukraine crisis on Japan’s energy security and explores possible future relations with states of the Gulf Cooperation Council, particularly Qatar. The final speaker on the panel, Satoru Nakamura, argued in his paper, “Is a New Chapter in Qatar-Japan Relations on the Horizon in Light of the Ukrainian Crisis?” that both Qatar and Japan are experiencing a dynamic transformation that requires continued dialogue to restructure their multipronged cooperation, especially in energy and security.
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