TOKYO – U.S. Naval War College’s (NWC) Stockton Center for the Study of International Law participated in annual staff talks with Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force’s (JMSDF) Command and Staff College (CSC), March 6-7.
The two-day talks, presided over by Vice Adm. Hideki Yuasa, president of JMSDF CSC, brought together Japanese scholars, JMSDF staff and NWC professors to exchange views on the developing concept of “gray zone” conflicts.
Gray zones are the areas of international law where considerable ambiguities remain, that states then exploit to their own advantage.
The NWC team was led by James Kraska, chairman of the Stockton Center, who facilitated a discussion on “Gray Zone Conflict and the International Court of Justice Jurisprudence.”
“The presentation served as a point of departure for a thorough dialogue and understanding of gray zone conflicts and gray zone operations, especially in the context of international law and state practice,” said Kraska. “The exchange of views generated a stronger and shared understanding of various approaches by governments, industry and academic scholars regarding respective national and international law views.”
Additional discussion included maritime law, freedom of the seas, and the law of naval warfare in the context of the security of Japan and the U.S.-Japan alliance.
The annual talks continue to solidify the relationship and synergy between the JMSDF CSC and NWC.