Stanford University

International Relations

FSI researchers strive to understand how countries relate to one another, and what policies are needed to achieve global stability and prosperity. International relations experts focus on the challenging U.S.-Russian relationship, the alliance between the U.S. and Japan and the limitations of America’s counterinsurgency strategy in Afghanistan.

Foreign aid is also examined by scholars trying to understand whether money earmarked for health improvements reaches those who need it most. And FSI’s Walter H. Shorenstein Asia-Pacific Research Center has published on the need for strong South Korean leadership in dealing with its northern neighbor.

FSI researchers also look at the citizens who drive international relations, studying the effects of migration and how borders shape people’s lives. Meanwhile FSI students are very much involved in this area, working with the United Nations in Ethiopia to rethink refugee communities.

Trade is also a key component of international relations, with FSI approaching the topic from a slew of angles and states. The economy of trade is rife for study, with an APARC event on the implications of more open trade policies in Japan, and FSI researchers making sense of who would benefit from a free trade zone between the European Union and the United States.

Second Conference on "The Political Economy of Japan under the Abe Government"

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Second Conference on "The Political Economy of Japan under the Abe Government"

March 1 - 2, 2019

Philippines Conference Room

Sponsored by: Japan Society for Promotion of Science, Japan Foundation Center for Global Partnership, and Freeman Spogli Institute for International Studies (Stanford University)

Organizers: Takeo Hoshi and Phillip Lipscy

 

 

Program

3/1/2019

8:45am   Breakfast

9:05am    Welcome Remark     Toru Tamiya (JSPS San Francisco Office)
                                                   Osamu Honda (Japan Foundation Center for Global Partnership)

9:15am  "Abenomics and Japan's Entrepreneurship and Innovation: Is the Third Arrow Pointed in the Right Direction for Global Competition in the Silicon Valley Era?", Kenji Kushida (Stanford University)

Discussant:
Yong Suk Lee (Stanford University)

10:15am  Break

10:30am  "Abe’s Womanomics Policy: Did it have Effect on the closing of Gender Gap in Managers?", Nobuko Nagase (Ochanomizu University)

Discussant:
Curtis Milhaupt (Stanford University)

11:30am  Move to SIEPR Building for Lunch and Keynote Speech

11:45am  Lunch to conference participants

12:15pm  Lunch and Panel Discussion on Abenomics at SIEPR Building

Moderator: Takeo Hoshi
Panelists: Joshua Hausman
                   Takatoshi Ito
                  Nobuko Nagase
                  Steve Vogel

1:45pm   Panel ends and walk back to Encina Hall

2:00pm    "Abenomics, the Exchange Rate, and Markup Dynamics in Japanese Industries", Kyoji Fukao (Hitotsubashi University) and Shuichiro Nishioka (West Virginia University)

Discussant:
Yuhei Miyauchi (Stanford University and Boston University)

3:00pm  Break

3:30pm   "Abe's Reverse Course: How a Labor Shortage Transformed Labor Politics and Policy", Steven Vogel (University of California, Berkeley)

Discussant:
Kenji Kushida (Stanford University)


4:30pm   "The Crisis that Wasn’t: How Japan Has Avoided a Bond Market Panic", Mark T. Bamba and David E. Weinstein (Columbia University)

Discussant:
Johannes Wieland (University of California, San Diego)

5:30pm     Adjourn

 

3/2/2019

8:30am   Breakfast

9:00am   Welcome Remark
                 Moto Ono (Japan Foundation Center for Global Partnership)

9:10am   "The Enduring Challenges of History Issues", Mary McCarthy (Drake Univesity)

Discussant:
Phillip Lipscy (Stanford University)

10:10am  Break

10:25am "Expansion of the Prime Minister's Power in the Japanese Parliamentary System", Harukata Takenaka (National Graduate Institute for Policy Studies)

Discussants:
Patricia Maclachlan (University of Texas)

11:25pm  "Abenomics: Est. in 2013, or 2007?", Takatoshi Ito (Columbia University)

                   Discussants:
                  Takeo Hoshi (Stanford University)

12:25pm  Lunch

1:30pm  "Abenomics, Monetary Policy, and Consumption", Joshua Hausman (University of Michigan), Takashi Unayama (Hitotsubashi University), and Johannes Wieland (University of California, San Diego)

Discussant:
Thuy Lan Nguyen (Santa Clara University)

2:30pm   "The Great Disconnect: The Decoupling of Wage and Price Inflation in Japan", Takeo Hoshi (Stanford University) and Anil Kashyap (University of Chicago)

Discussant:
Takashi Unayama (Hitotsubashi University)

3:30pm  Break

4:00pm   "Introduction", Takeo Hoshi (Stanford University) and Phillip Lipscy (Stanford University)

5:30pm  Adjourn

 

Conferences

Pacific Settlement of Disputes in East Asia: Inter-State Arbitration and Judicial Diplomacy

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Resolution of economic disputes are well established in East Asia where economic growth and prosperity are common goals among the nations. However, other types of disputes have long plagued among East Asian countries. These include conflicts that have deep historical roots, or ones that involve state sovereignty, territorial disputes, and claims deriving from historical wrongs. These issues have harmed the regional security in East Asia for a long time, threatened its peace and security and hindered further progress, thus putting tension on the diplomatic relations among the East Asian countries. Attempts to resolve these disputes via politics or diplomacy have not been much successful. Compliance of the outcome of the dispute might prove to be challenging if the losing party decides that the benefit of resisting the unfavored outcome outweighs the cost of reputational harm.

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Eun-Young Park will present that, despite the difficulty, such disputes can be resolved fairly, provided that an independent neutral dispute resolution mechanism is securely in place. In this model, the states themselves voluntarily submit their disputes to a neutral third party capable of making fair and equitable decisions on the merits of the cases before it. There are advantages in opting for the region-wide system of independent and neutral dispute resolution in handling the Gordian Knot that is the complex and difficult problem of sovereignty and history of conflicts in East Asia. He will explore the possibility of establishing an inter-state arbitration system based on the fact that the East Asian countries already possess a good deal of social and legal capital that is readily applicable in resolving sensitive transnational disputes. He will also touch upon a permanent arbitral or claims tribunal in East Asia to deal with claims arising out of the Korean Unification; a monumental event after which much chaos—legal and otherwise—will most certainly ensue. Establishing a system of international dispute resolution system in East Asia is certain to pave the way in forming the East Asian legal community in which claims and grievances may be adjudicated fairly and brought without escalating political tensions among countries.

Eun-Young Park is Vice President of the London Court of International Arbitration and currently a visiting scholar at Stanford Asia-Pacific Research Center. Previously, he served as a Judge in the Seoul District Court of Republic of Korea. After leaving the bench, he has advised Korean Financial Supervisory Commission in establishing governance system in the public and private sector under the auspices of the World Bank and the IMF as a result of IMF bail-out of Korea during the Asian Financial Crisis. He has practiced law at Kim & Chang as a partner and Co-Chair of the International Arbitration and Litigation Practice Group, and focused on international dispute resolution including trade sanctions, transnational litigation, and international arbitration. He has served as a board member of the Singapore International Arbitration Centre (SIAC) and is currently a member of the Court of Arbitration of the SIAC. He has taught in various universities including Sungkyunkwan University School of Law as an adjunct professor. He holds a J.S.D. and L.L.M. from NYU School of Law, and is admitted to the New York Bar, the Korean Bar, and the Singapore International Commercial Court.

 

Eun Young Park Visiting Scholar, Shorenstein APARC, Stanford University
Seminars
Korean Studies Colloquium Series

Spring session of Stanford e-Japan online course begins

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The Stanford University Scholars Program for Japanese High School Students or “Stanford e-Japan” is an online course sponsored by the Yanai Tadashi Foundation and the Stanford Program on International and Cross-Cultural Education (SPICE), Stanford University. This online course teaches Japanese high school students about U.S. society and underscores the importance of U.S.–Japan relations. Through Stanford e-Japan, ambassadors, top scholars, and experts throughout the United States provide web-based lectures and engage Japanese high school students in live discussion sessions called “virtual classes.” Stanford e-Japan is now in its 5th year and 8th session overall.

On March 15, 2019, 29 high school students across Japan were notified of their acceptance to the Spring 2019 Stanford e-Japan Program. The online course kicks off today and runs until August 23, and will include students representing Aichi, Chiba, Fukuoka, Gunma, Hiroshima, Hokkaido, Hyogo, Kanagawa, Nagano, Niigata, Okinawa, Osaka, Saitama, Shizuoka, Tokyo, and Toyama. In addition to a diverse geographical representation within Japan, the students themselves bring a diverse set of experiences to the program, many having lived overseas in places such as Canada, China, the Philippines, and the United States.

The selected Stanford e-Japan high school students will listen to lectures by renowned experts in the field including Professors Emeritus Daniel Okimoto and Peter Duus, and Professors Katherine Gin Lum, Phillip Lipscy, and Kenji Kushida (Stanford University) on topics such as “Baseball Diplomacy,” “The Atomic Bombings of Japan,” “The Attack on Pearl Harbor,” “Religion in the U.S.,” “U.S.–Japan Relations,” and “Silicon Valley and Entrepreneurship.” Live virtual classes include guest speakers such as Ms. Suzanne Basalla (Toyota Research Institute), Ms. Maiko Cagno (U.S. Consulate, Fukuoka), and Mr. Andrew Ogawa (Quest Venture Partners).

Many Stanford e-Japan students in the current cohort (as well as past ones) have mentioned their desire to study in the United States. The Stanford e-Japan Program equips many students with the motivation and confidence to do so, in addition to many of the skills they will need to study at U.S. universities and colleges. In addition to weekly lectures, assignments, discussion board posts, and virtual classes, the program participants will complete a final research paper on a topic concerning U.S. society or the U.S.–Japan relationship.

“Through this course, we’ve raised Japanese students’ interest in U.S. society and U.S.–Japan relations, which is fantastic,” commented Brown. “I’ve encouraged them to seriously consider undergraduate studies in the United States and to look into opportunities like the Yanai Tadashi Foundation Scholarships.”

Stanford e-Japan is one of several online courses for high school students offered by SPICE, including the Reischauer Scholars Program, the China Scholars Program, and the Sejong Korean Scholars Program. For more information about Stanford e-Japan, please visit stanfordejapan.org.

To be notified when the next Stanford e-Japan application period opens, join our email list or follow us on Facebook and Twitter.

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Stanford University online courses for high school students
SPICE at Stanford University offers several online courses for high school students.
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Rights Make Might: Global Human Rights and Minority Social Movements in Japan

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EMERGING ISSUES IN CONTEMPORARY ASIA

A Special Seminar Series

RSVP required by Tuesday, May 7, 2019

RSVP Now

 

ABSTRACT: Why have the three most salient minority groups in Japan - the politically dormant Ainu, the active but unsuccessful Koreans, and the former outcaste group of Burakumin - all expanded their activism since the late 1970s despite the unfavorable domestic political environment? My investigation into the history of the three groups finds an answer in the galvanizing effects of global human rights on local social movements. Drawing on interviews and archival data, I document the transformative impact of global human rights ideas and institutions on minority activists, which changed the prevalent understanding about their standing in Japanese society and propelled them to new international venues for political claim making. The global forces also changed the public perception and political calculus in Japan over time, catalyzing substantial gains for the minority movements. Having benefited from global human rights, all three groups repaid their debt by contributing to the consolidation and expansion of international human rights principles and instruments. The in-depth historical comparative analysis offers rare windows into local, micro-level impact of global human rights - complementing my other projects on the relationship between international human rights and local politics, which employ cross-national quantitative analyses - and contributes to our understanding of international norms and institutions, social movements, human rights, ethnoracial politics, and Japanese society. 
 
Kiyoteru Tsutsui
PROFILE:   Kiyoteru Tsutsui is Professor of Sociology, Director of the Center for Japanese Studies, and Director of the Donia Human Rights Center at the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor. His research on globalization of human rights and its impact on local politics has appeared in American Sociological Review, American Journal of Sociology, Social Forces, Social Problems, Journal of Peace Research, Journal of Conflict Resolution, and other social science journals. His book publications include Rights Make Might: Global Human Rights and Minority Social Movements in Japan (Oxford University Press 2018), and a co-edited volume (with Alwyn Lim) Corporate Social Responsibility in a Globalizing World (Cambridge University Press 2015). He has been a recipient of National Endowment for the Humanities Fellowship, National Science Foundation grants, the SSRC/CGP Abe Fellowship, Stanford Japan Studies Postdoctoral Fellowship, and other grants as well as awards from American Sociological Association sections on Global and Transnational Sociology (2010, 2013), Human Rights (2017), Asia and Asian America (2018), and Collective Behavior and Social Movements (2018).
 

 

McClatchy Hall, Building 120, Studio 40
450 Serra Mall
Stanford University

Kiyoteru Tsutsui Professor of Sociology, University of Michigan
Seminars

The War Scare That Wasn’t

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Seminar recording: https://youtu.be/NUJqthUIGiU

 

Abstract: Did the Cold War of the 1980s nearly turn hot? Much has been made of NATO’s November 1983 Able Archer 83 command post exercise, which the literature typically casts as having nearly precipitated a nuclear war. Warsaw Pact policy-makers, according to the conventional wisdom, suspected that the exercise was more than just a rehearsal of nuclear escalation and concluded that a surprise nuclear attack was imminent, nearly launching a preemptive strike of their own. This article overturns this narrative using new, international evidence from the political, military, and intelligence archives of the Eastern bloc. First, it shows that the much-touted Warsaw Pact intelligence effort to assess Western intentions and capabilities, Project RIaN, which supposedly triggered Eastern fears of a surprise attack was nowhere near operational at the time of Able Archer 83. Second, it presents an account of the East’s sanguine observations of Able Archer 83 disproving accounts which allege that the exercise nearly escalated to nuclear war. In doing so, it advances debates not only in the historiography of the late Cold War, but also pertaining to the stability of the nuclear peace and the role of perception and misperception in policy-making.

 

Speaker's Biography:

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Simon Miles is Assistant Professor of Public Policy and Slavic and Eurasian Studies at Duke University’s Sanford School of Public Policy. He teaches and researches US grand strategy, nuclear weapons, and Cold War international history. Simon is the author of Engaging the ‘Evil Empire’: US-Soviet Relations, 1980–1985, forthcoming from Cornell University Press; and he is beginning a new monograph, On Guard for Peace and Socialism: The Warsaw Pact, 1955–1991, an international history of the Cold War–era military alliance.

Simon Miles Assistant Professor of Public Policy and Slavic and Eurasian Studies Duke University’s Sanford School of Public Policy
Seminars
Research Seminar Series

Marriage, Fertility and Rapid Population Aging: Japan’s Distinctive Demographic Landscape

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EMERGING ISSUES IN CONTEMPORARY ASIA

A Special Seminar Series

RSVP required by Friday, April 29, 2019

RSVP Now

 

ABSTRACT:  Japan’s population is the oldest in the world and will continue to shrink for the foreseeable future. My first goal in this talk is to provide an overview of Japan’s distinctive demographic landscape, focusing on rapid population aging and its policy implications while also emphasizing the role that declining rates of marriage have played in accelerating population aging via their impact on fertility. After describing the centrality of marriage behavior to our understanding of demographic and societal trends in Japan, my second goal is to present results of new research documenting an unexpected reversal in educational differences in women’s marriage. For decades, highly-educated women have married later and more often remained unmarried than their less-educated counterparts – a pattern thought to reflect the high opportunity costs of marriage in Japan’s gender inegalitarian society. However, my analyses of recent data show that women with a university degree are now more likely than high school graduates to marry, a shift that hints at the possibility of changing norms and expectations regarding women’s employment and economic contributions to the family. Concurrent trends toward continued decline in marriage among low-educated men and women are consistent with emphases on the deteriorating economic circumstances of this group.
 
James Raymo
PROFILE:   Jim Raymo is Professor and Chair of the Department of Sociology at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. He is also the current Director of Graduate Training of the Center for Demography of Health and Aging and the former Director of the Center for Demography and Ecology. Raymo’s research focuses primarily on evaluating patterns and potential consequences of major demographic changes in Japan. He has published widely on key features of recent family change, including delayed marriage, extended co-residence with parents, and increases in premarital cohabitation, shotgun marriages, and divorce. In other lines of research, he has examined health outcomes at older ages in Japan and their relationship with family, work, and local area characteristics and has examined multiple dimensions of well-being among the growing population of single mothers and their children in Japan. He is currently involved in a new project that explores explanations for low fertility in Japan and another that examines inequalities in children’s development in Japan. His research has been published in top U.S. journals such as American Sociological Review, American Journal of Sociology, Demography, and Journal of Gerontology: Social Sciences as well as in Japanese journals. 
 
 

McClatchy Hall, Building 120, Studio 40
450 Serra Mall
Stanford University

James Raymo <i>Professor and Chair of the Department of Sociology at the University of Wisconsin-Madison</i>

A Pacific Air Forces Perspective: Challenges in the Indo-Pacific Region

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General Charles Brown, Commander, Pacific Air Forces, will discuss the strategic importance and complexity of the vast Indo-Pacific Region, and the increasing interstate competition for position and influence.  He will also address how U.S. national security priorities shape the development the Pacific Air Forces strategy and operational concepts.  Last, he will explain how his Command attempts to balance the requirements of U.S. joint forces and allied nations to produce combined airpower, and the importance of partner relationships in achieving comprehensive regional security.

General Charles Brown
General Charles Q. Brown Jr. is the Commander, Pacific Air Forces (PACAF); Air Component Commander for U.S. Indo-Pacific Command; and Executive Director, Pacific Air Combat Operations Staff, Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam, Hawaii.  PACAF is responsible for Air Force activities spread over half the globe in a command that supports more than 46,000 Airmen serving principally in Japan, Korea, Hawaii, Alaska and Guam.

Philippines Conference Room
Encina Hall, 3rd Floor, Central (C330)
616 Serra Mall, Stanford, CA 94305

Lectures

China Scholars Program online course now accepting applications for Fall 2019

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Applications opened yesterday for the China Scholars Program, an intensive, college-level online course on contemporary China for U.S. high school students. The China Scholars Program is offered by the Stanford Program on International and Cross-Cultural Education (SPICE), Stanford University, and is open to rising 10th, 11th, and 12th graders. The Fall 2019 online course will run from late August through December. Applications are due June 15, 2019.


Stanford University China Scholars Program for high school students
Fall 2019 session (late August through December)
Application period: April 15 to June 15, 2019
 

Accepted applicants will engage in a rigorous academic exploration of key issues in China, spanning politics, economics, social issues, culture, and the arts, with an emphasis on the relationship between the United States and China. In real-time conversations with leading scholars, experts, and diplomats from Stanford University and other institutions, participants will be exposed to the cutting edge of U.S.–China relations and scholarship. Students who complete the online course will be equipped with a rare degree of expertise about China and international relations that may have a significant impact on their choice of study and future career.

As in previous sessions of the China Scholars Program, the Fall 2019 cohort will comprise high school students from across the United States. Participants in the current cohort represent states across the nation, including New York, New Jersey, Massachusetts, Missouri, Indiana, Pennsylvania, Illinois, Arizona, California, and Hawaii. The immense diversity of student backgrounds and experiences within each online course allows for an especially rich exchange of ideas and perspectives among the young scholars—a crucial and invaluable component of the learning experience.

“It’s been one of the most fascinating, valuable, and formative classes I have ever taken,” says Rebecca Qiu, a recent alum of the program. “Every week, you discuss pressing topics—from technology censorship to the urban-rural divide—with your motivated peers. During virtual classes, you have the opportunity to ask questions and speak with some of the most influential experts and researchers on modern China—I cannot emphasize how valuable this is. [The China Scholars Program] provides you with a huge breadth and depth of knowledge on China and U.S.–China relations that you cannot find in any typical high school class.”

More information on the China Scholars Program is available at http://chinascholars.org. Interested high school students can apply now at https://spicestanford.smapply.io/prog/china_scholars_program/. The deadline to apply is June 15, 2019.

To be notified when the next China Scholars Program application period opens, join our email list or follow us on Facebook and Twitter.

The China Scholars Program is one of several online courses for high school students offered by SPICE, Stanford University, including the Reischauer Scholars Program (on Japan), the Sejong Scholars Program (on Korea), and the Stanford e-Japan Program (on U.S. society, offered to high school students in Japan).

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Defense Without Deterrence: Indian Military Strategy in the 1965 War

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EMERGING ISSUES IN CONTEMPORARY ASIA

A Special Seminar Series

RSVP required by Wednesday, April 17, 2019

RSVP Now

ABSTRACT: Why does success in combat sometimes fail to produce a stable and durable peace settlement? In the 1965 war, India successfully repelled a Pakistani invasion of the disputed territory of Kashmir, captured new territory, and launched a massive counter-offensive – but it did not improve the long-term security of Kashmir or deter future Pakistani aggression. This presentation offers an explanation that shows how war can help to establish deterrence between enduring rivals. I argue combat success is important, but must be paired with costly signals of resolve. In 1965, India achieved combat success but failed to deliver such signals of resolve: it did not permanently retain the Kashmiri territory it captured, and it deliberately limited the strategic threat posed by its counter-offensive. As a result, India defended against invasion without establishing post-war deterrence. India’s current military strategy continues to favor ineffective and potentially destabilizing concepts of deterrence. This carries implications not only for regional security, but also U.S. strategy, which increasingly depends on India to maintain a favorable and stable regional balance of power.
 
Arzan Tarapore
PROFILE: Arzan Tarapore is a nonresident fellow at the National Bureau of Asian Research, an adjunct defense analyst at the RAND Corporation, and from Fall 2019, an adjunct assistant professor at Georgetown University. His research lies at the intersection of South Asian politics and military strategy. His current book project explains the concept of strategic effectiveness, drawing on in-depth historical case studies of India’s war-fighting experience since 1965. Prior to his scholarly career, Arzan served for 13 years in the Australian Defence Department, which included operational deployments and a diplomatic posting to Washington, DC. He holds a PhD in war studies from King’s College London.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Philippines Conference RoomEncina Hall, 3rd Floor, Central616 Serra Street, Stanford, CA 94305
Arzan Tarapore Nonresident fellow at the National Bureau of Asian Research

China Is Pushing Back Against Taiwan for These Three Reasons

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Ketian Zhang
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On March 31, Taiwan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs reported that two Chinese Air Force (PLAAF) J-11 jets crossed the median line of the Taiwan Strait. This violated the long-held tacit agreement between China and Taiwan that neither side should cross the median line.

Taiwan deemed this “an intentional, reckless & provocative action,” which triggered “a 10-minute standoff” in the air. As Asia security expert Bonnie S. Glaser notes that, if intentional, this would be the first PLAAF crossing of the median line in about 20 years. In this case, it’s likely that Taiwan, not the South China Sea, prompted Beijing’s actions.

An unresolved issue from the Chinese civil war, Taiwan has always been a “core interest” to party leaders in Beijing. Here are some key takeaways from my research on China-Taiwan relations…

Read the full article in The Washington Post.

To hear more from Ketian, don't miss her recently posted video Q&A. In addition, be sure to RSVP for her April 16 seminar "Killing the Chicken to Scare the Monkey: Explaining Coercion by China in the South China Sea."

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The marines of China navy participate in the annual military training on January 3, 2018 in Zhanjiang,
ZHANJIANG, CHINA - JANUARY 03: The marines of China navy participate in the annual military training on January 3, 2018 in Zhanjiang, Guangdong Province of China.
Pu Haiyang/VCG via Getty Images
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