‘Golden age’ of EU-Japan ties shapes international relations

THE EU and Japan have long been post-war allies, but there are growing signals that the relationship is entering a “golden age” with key economic and geopolitical ramifications well beyond the bilateral partnership.

Grand terminology such as “golden” is, of course, subjective in nature, and can be prone to reversal. For instance, the UK and China declared a “golden era” under the prime ministership of David Cameron after 2010; however, this has since been hastily jettisoned given the range of bilateral challenges since then.

Yet, there do appear strong reasons why the “golden” adage is highly applicable to EU-Japan relations, especially since the Ukraine war began, with bilateral ties at what may be an all-time high.