Jörn Keck is a former Ambassador to Japan of the EU Commission.

Dimitri Vanoverbeke is Professor of Japanese Studies at the Catholic University of Leuven, Belgium.

Franz Waldenberger is Professor of Japanese Economy at the Ludwig Maximilian University, Munich, Germany.

This book presents a comprehensive overview of EU-Japan relations from 1970 to the present. It charts developments over the period, analyses key specific areas of importance to the relationship, and concludes by assessing how the relationship is likely to develop going forward. Throughout, the book discusses the factors on both sides which motivate the relationship, including Japan's concern to secure markets for its advanced industrial products, and the factors motivating current negotiations for a deeper and more comprehensive economic and cooperative partnership.

Preface Introduction: Europe and Japan from the Common Market to the European Union Part 1: EU-Japan Relations 1970 Onward 1. 1970-1982: Growing Difficulties and the GATT Procedure 2. 1983-1987: Export Moderation as a Panacea or Can Japan Change? 3. 1987-1990: Keeping Relations on an Even Keel 4. 1990-1995: Cooperation - Developing the Policy 5. 1990-1995: Trade and Economics - From Confrontation to Conversation 6. 1996-2000: Consolidating a Mature Relationship 7. 2000-2010: Shaping a Common Future in the Decade of Japan - Europe Cooperation - Rhetoric and Policies 8. Forty Years of EU-Japan Relations: Were They Driven by Trade and Exchange Rate Concerns? Part 2: Case studies 9. A Long-running Dispute Finally Resolved: Reform of Japan's Liquor Tax Regime 10. The Elements of Consensus: Liberalising EC-Japan Passenger Car Trade in the 1990s 11. The Darker Side of Market Access: Pork-Meat Trade, Harbour Management Fund and Construction (1987-1991) 12. The European Community and Japan Negotiating Agriculture in the Uruguay Round 13. Exploring Common Interests: Cooperation in Science and Technology 14. The History and Role of EU-Japan Parliamentary Exchanges Part 3: Looking Forward 15. The EU-Japan Relationship in Asia 16. The Dynamics in the EU-Japan Relationship