ABSTRACT
In any study in political science and international relations, it is important to place ideas and observations of state behavior in the context of theory. This chapter will place this case study of Japan in the context of the established international-relations and foreign-policy theories. Political theory helps to explain the reasons why nations make the choices that they do, and it helps us to better predict state behavior. The chapter describes Japan’s adaptation to the changes brought about by the end of the Cold War through the application of a foreign-policy-restructuring model developed by Charles Hermann. The model is applied to Japan’s foreign-policy restructuring after the Cold War.
