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Mr. Abe Goes to Washington
On April 29, Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe will address a joint session of the United States Congress. The Japan-US alliance is now 63 years old, but this will be the first time that a Japanese leader will be accorded this high honor from the American government and people. Abe’s visit to the US comes at a time when friction between the two countries is at an all-time low. The trade and economic disputes that incited tensions – and a sub-genre of paranoid movies about Japan – in the 1980s, when nine members of Congress even smashed a Toshiba radio with sledgehammers, rarely make an appearance nowadays. ... (full story)