The National Institute for Defense Studies (NIDS). Japan

Transcription

1 The National Institute for Defense Studies (NIDS). Japan 1. Name of the Defense Institution The National Institute for Defense Studies (NIDS) (of Japan) 2. Location and point of contact (1) Location: Nakameguro, Meguro-Ku, Tokyo, , Japan (2) Point of contact: Planning and Coordination Office The National Institute for Defense Studies Tel: Home page: Fax: Organization and No. of personnel (1) Representative Mr. KAWAJIRI Tooru, President of the National Institute for Defense Studies (2) Organization rf-yj \\ '.)Vf *^> * ^ ^ * * *?) Ji f ~ ' *' **i* i* f ^»W >*g\ ^Jfe v»t-*m >,, "'+ - -?M\--Al'f ", ' -, ^ A J* Executive Director ff»' * - ^ - 1 " 1 *' <t^* '~f ".'? il Affairs sion Research President ureofnds. ]'*', ; ; : W" * *, i, f-t'-f **--. * "*!' ilimf^s VirePr Vice President R'^S; < i.^n K % Planning and Coordination Office - I ' Military History v» "? *' '«, '* J t.^-''\ tlff^a?^ «*/. 'V* '*..!»-,. "» V ' ' i * " f ' H& v x *. *V ] Education Libr (3) No. of Personnel The total authorized NIDS staff is about 130 personnel, of which 80 are research staff members. About 30 of the research staffers are uniformed SDF officers. Page 1 of 5

2 (4) Position within the Defense Agency VeraRDefense Agency A - Forces Structure fc '*'' ' Security Council of Japan Director-General of the Defense Agency (Minister of State for Defense) Defense Facilities Administration Agency Internal Bureau Joint Staff Counci Ground Self- Defense Force National Institute for Defense Studies Maritime Self- Defense Force I A National Defense Academy Air Self- Defense Force National Defense Medical College Other Auxiliary Organizations 4. A brief history Aug 1952 July 1954 May 1956 April 1985 Established as the National Safety College Renamed as the National Defense College Took over the Military History Division from the Staff College of the Ground Self-Defense Force. Changed its name from the National Defense College to the National Institute for Defense Studies and established a research system directly linked to the policy-making bureau of the Defense Agency. Page 2 of 5

3 5. Principal and basic tasks NIDS, as the main policy research arm of the Japan Defense Agency (JDA), is dedicated to strategic studies of policy relevance. It also functions as a war college-level educational institution for senior uniformed officers of the Self-Defense Forces (SDF), civilian officials of JDA as well as other branches of the government, and employees of equivalent level from private sectors. as the largest military history research center in Japan. In addition, NIDS serves 6. Research activities Research at NIDS is dictated by its hybrid nature: it is a part of the government and at the same time an academic institution. NIDS endeavors to meet demands of JDA leaders for analysis on matters seriously bearing upon Japan's present and future national security. This task can best be achieved only if academic freedom, flexibility of mind and long-term perspectives are allowed to flourish. In addressing its research topics, NIDS values an interdisciplinary approach. Therefore, research projects at NIDS are usually conducted by a group of scholars/specialists with diverse academic and career backgrounds. They come from academia, uniformed and civilian services, the business community and think tanks. NIDS is an institution where various individuals can apply collective expertise to achieve common goals. 7. Educational activities Officials and officers in high policy-level positions need to have a broad perspective on national security. NIDS provides, not service-specific, but a higher policy-level education on national security and national defense of Japan. Unlike other SDF academic institutions, NIDS students include officials from JDA and other governmental agencies, private sectors, foreign militaries as well as senior SDF officers. Advanced education at NIDS is becoming more important, as the roles of JDA and SDF expand to cover international activities such as peacekeeping operations and confidence building. (1) Regular Course The first and main academic program is the Regular Course on national security, which lasts o.ie academic year, or 10 months, from the beginning of September to next June. The class consists of colonel/captain-rank officers from Japan Self Defense Forces, equivalent-rank foreign military officers, civilian JDA officials, and representatives from other government agencies and private sectors. N Page 3 of 5

4 The Regular Course covers a wide range of issues, such as the foundations of national security, military strategy, military history, science and technology, economics, international relations, domestic affairs and national security policy-making. (2) Special Course NIDS also offers Special Course. This is a three-week intensive course on current policy issues conducted in July. Students are selected from generals and flag officers at key SDF assignments, equivalent-rank civilian officials, and representatives from private sectors. This intensive course focus on national security issues and group discussion and to share their opinions with other students of varying professional backgrounds. 8. Military History NIDS serves as the nation's sole military history research center. It conducts research on military history, and maintains original documents and records on the national defense of Japan, which are open to the public. The Military History of NIDS bears primary responsibility for military history research and studies within Japan. 9. Dissemination NIDS disseminates the results of its research primarily for two purposes. First, NIDS aims to encourage healthy, thought provoking discussions and debate within the defense-policy community of Japan. Second, by presenting its views to its international counterparts, NIDS encourages objective and constructive discourse, thereby promoting mutual understanding and trust. NIDS disseminates its ideas primarily in two ways: publications and open conferences. (1) Publications (free download available from the NIDS website) Easf Asian Strategic Review (English/Japanese) First published in 1997, the publication presents the views of NIDS researchers on the strategic environment in East Asia and issues of critical importance as they relate to regional security. Boueikenkyusho Kiyou (NIDS Security Studies) (Japanese) This journal, published since 1999, features articles on current security issues authored by NIDS researchers. NIDS Security Reports (English) Articles selected from Boueikenkyusyo Kiyou are carried in this report published once a year. Page 4 of 5

5 Military History Studies Annual (Japanese) First published in 1998, this publication carries articles on military history and provides information on military archives. (2) Open Conference (with Japanese/English simultaneous interpretation) NIDS International Symposium on Security Affairs This open symposium features prominent experts from overseas for public discussion on security issues. It is held annually in fall or winter. NIDS International forum on War History This program started in 2002 to reexamine military history from multinational perspective by comparing various nation's views of military history. It is held each fall and is open to the public. 10. Other characteristics and points to be publicized NIDS has been carrying out bilateral exchanges with the United States, South Korea, Russia, China, Australia and India. Also, NIDS has been actively involved in multilateral exchanges (such as Asia-Pacific Security Seminar and Defense Research Fellow Exchange program with Southeast Asian countries), and has been actively conducting study exchanges with other countries through international symposia (such as International Symposium on Security Affairs, Colloquium on International Security and International Forum on War History). Page 5 of 5