Events of the past month suggest that 2003 will be a turbulent year at home and abroad. In Japan, rumors of a snap general election are already making the rounds, while the ailing economy appears to be slipping back into recession.
Abroad, particularly in Northeast Asia and the Middle East, the standoff continues over North Korea's and Iraq's suspected programs to develop weapons of mass destruction. The United States, whose global diplomacy has been transformed by the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, is stepping up its campaign against international terrorism.
The U.S. appears determined to disarm Iraq by force although much of the world's public opinion favors a peaceful solution. In Asia, the "nuclear threat" from North Korea is posing a diplomatic challenge for the U.S., South Korea, China and Russia as well as Japan.