The afternoon session began with a panel on international politics and foreign affairs hosted by Dr. Amy King (ANU). The panel featured prominent Keio University professor Soeya Yoshihide whose work on middle power diplomacy has been a leitmotif of discussions about Japan’s role in world politics for over two decades. Prof. Soeya began by contextualizing Japanese defense transformation within wider preoccupations with how middle power states can navigate a region dividing into hostile blocs. In addition to Japan’s Washington alignment, Soeya promoted the importance of Japanese relations with states such as ROK and Australia. The second speaker, Prof. Oba Mie followed Soeya’s conclusions by delving into the history of Japan-ASEAN cooperation in a particular highlighting major political markers in the relationship such as the 1977 Fukuda speech and doctrine. The Q&A was particularly lively with a back and forth between Prof. Soeya and Dr. Michael Green (USYD) over the direction of Japanese foreign and defense polices. Their debate over the nature of power and international politics represented two possible alternatives for Japanese political leaders in the years ahead.