So, Japan as a country has lost its vigor; it feels very much closed in for various reasons.
Sentiment: NEGATIVE
One of the great tragedies is that there is so much less open land available in Japan today. Many Japanese come to New Zealand because of its beauty.
When I came to office, in terms of diplomacy and national security, as well as the economy, Japan was in a very severe situation.
Compared with U.S. cities, Japanese cities bend over backward to help foreigners. The countryside is another matter.
Japan is a great nation. It should begin to act like one.
Japan actually is an aging population, and so as the population has aged, they have had a lot more problems with health.
Basically, people in other countries don't want to have to work quite as flat-out as they do in Japan.
I speak of the old Japan, because out of the ashes of the old Japan there has risen a new Japan.
My observation is that after one hundred and twenty years of modernisation since the opening of the country, present-day Japan is split between two opposite poles of ambiguity.
A robust economy is a source of national strength for Japan.
There's a tremendous amount of energy in Japan and, increasingly, in China.