The significance of Japan-U.S. relations in the past half century should become the basis of sound bilateral ties in the next 50 years, former Ambassador to the United States Yoshio Okawara said.
Okawara, 81, president of the Institute for International Policy Studies, a Tokyo-based foreign policy think tank, is organizing the "A50" project, which commemorates next year's 50th anniversary of the 1951 San Francisco treaty. With the conclusion of the treaty, Japan returned to the international community as an independent state, six years after its defeat in World War II.
"No one can dispute the fact that U.S. postwar economic assistance to Japan has made the country what it is today," he said. "It is important, therefore, that the entire nation once again appreciate the historic significance of the San Francisco treaty and express gratitude for U.S. assistance."