The 21st Century Political Science Association, a group of intellectuals in the Busan, Ulsan, and Gyeongnam regions, invited Professor Katsuyuki Yakushiji of Toyo University, Japan, to deliver a special lecture on Japanese Diplomacy and Korea-Japan Relations on March 19 in the MICE Hall of the DSU Centum Campus.

The theme was "Japanese Diplomacy and Korea-Japan Relations in Transition," and was co-hosted by the DSU Japan Research Center and the Consulate General of Japan in Busan. Dongseo University President Jekuk Chang is the chairperson of the 21st Century Political Science Association.

Professor Yakushiji, who graduated from The University of Tokyo’s Department of Literature, was a journalist for Asahi Shimbun and its monthly magazine Ronza for a long time.

Since 2011, he has also been teaching as a professor in the Department of Media and Communications Faculty of the Department of Sociology at Toyo University.

In his special lecture, Professor Yakushiji said, "Although there have been troubling moments in the Korea-Japan relationship in the past, it is now much improved, and indeed good relations should very much be maintained in various fields such as politics, economy, and security.” This is in the best interests of both countries, he emphasized, as “if the two countries do not cooperate in the event of great disputes between the U.S., China, and Russia, both may face very difficult situations.”

After the lecture, there was a question and answer session focusing on the lessons to be learned from Japan’s ‘lost decades,’ and then a board meeting of 21st Century Political Science Association was held.