The news cycle has clearly shifted to covering Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga’s administration, but it is still prudent to take a bird’s-eye view on where Japan stands in the course of history following Shinzo Abe’s record tenure of nearly eight years — the longest serving-administration since the Cabinet system was established under the Meiji Constitution.
Starting with diplomacy, Japan has a long-standing security alliance with the United States. The U.S. maintains troops in Japan, including Okinawa, where the number of active-duty military personnel, mainly in the Air Force and Navy, easily exceed 20,000.
On the other hand, China is the nation’s top trading partner — both in terms of exports and imports.