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ADEBAHR Paul Ramon David
Graduate School of Intercultural Studies / Department of Cultural-Interaction
Associate Professor

Researcher basic information

■ Research Keyword
  • Neoclassical Realism
  • 日本の外交・安全保障戦略
  • アジア太平洋地域の国際関係
  • 日米安全保障関係
  • 国際関係論
  • 国際政治学
  • 日本外交論
  • 安全保障政策
■ Research Areas
  • Humanities & social sciences / International relations / International Relations, Neoclassical Realism, Geopolitics of the Pacific

Research activity information

■ Award
  • Nov. 2023 German Association for Social Science Research on Japan, Best Paper Award in a Social Science Journal on Japan, Between Regional Cooperation and Strategic Reordering: An Examination of the Change in Perceptions in Japanese Security Policy

  • Sep. 2019 京都大学 特に優れた博士論文表彰, 京都大学 特に優れた博士論文表彰

  • Apr. 2016 Japan Society Promotion Science, JSPS Research Fellow for Young Scientists DC1

  • Apr. 2014 MEXT, Japanese Government (Monbukagakusho) Scholarship

  • Apr. 2014 German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD), German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) Postgraduate Scholarship

  • Sep. 2007 Student Exchange Programm Fellow, Exchange Programm Munich University for Oversea Studies Fellow

■ Paper
  • David Adebahr, Annika Clasen
    In the midst of increasingly complex security challenges in the Indo-Pacific region, upholding the rules-based order (RBO) has emerged as the key objective for many states, most notably Japan. While previous research has mainly examined how states uphold the RBO in tandem with strengthening the rule of law (ROL), this article disentangles the relative importance of both objectives and shows that the ROL has become the far more critical norm for Japan. Using a qualitative content analysis and a neoclassical realist perspective, we make three key findings: first, the relative importance of ROL has increased significantly in Japan, especially since 2016. Second, however, Japan’s focus on ROL-based foreign policy dates back to the early 2000s and is therefore not a recent phenomenon. And third, the ROL has been particularly viable in terms of engaging with states in the region using international law as a common denominator.
    SAGE Publications, Dec. 2025, Journal of Asian Security and International Affairs, 13(1) (1), 97 - 120, English
    [Refereed]
    Scientific journal

  • Between global reliability and regional toughness: Japan's foreign policy course in the transition from Kishida to Ishiba
    David Adebahr
    Oct. 2025, Japan 2025: Politics, Economy and Society, 2025(1) (1), 1 - 24
    [Refereed]

  • Japan 2024: Main features and trends of Japanese foreign and security policy 2023/24: From global crises to global responsibility?
    David Adebahr
    Nov. 2024, Japan Jahrbuch 2024, 1(1) (1), 46 - 65
    [Refereed]

  • David Adebahr
    Informa UK Limited, Apr. 2024, Contemporary Japan, 36(2) (2), 261 - 279, English
    [Refereed]
    Scientific journal

  • Recent Developments and Trends in Japan’s Foreign and Security Policy 2022/ 2023: New strategies, new regional emphasis
    David Adebahr
    Dec. 2023, Japan Jahrbuch 2023, 2023(1) (1), 50 - 83
    [Refereed]
    In book

  • David Adebahr
    With Japan’s new connectivity initiative, Free and Open Indo-Pacific, and some previous doctrines, Tokyo has started to shift its regional security policy focus towards democratic Pacific states. Qualitative case studies on bilateral and multilateral cooperation in the Indo-Pacific assess these changes as reflecting a more proactive security policy initiated under the Abe administration (2012–2020). While Tokyo’s security policy in Southeast Asia has certainly changed both qualitatively and quantitatively since 2012/2013, explaining this change by referring to Prime Minister Abe’s foreign policy agenda falls short. Rather, Japan’s new strategy is the result of a change in perceptions among executive officials in the foreign and defense ministries that had already been initiated in the 2000s. This study looks at this development and examines the role of the Prime Minister’s Office of Japan (Kantei), the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA), and the Ministry of Defense (MOD) in initiating the change and assesses Japan’s Pacific strategy through an interviewbased qualitative case study. Using the concept of foreign policy analysis and based on official publications and interviews with representatives of the MOD, the MOFA, and Kantei advisors, this study shows that the origins of this new regionalism are found primarily in the changing perceptions of executive officials. This study considers government publications as well as the author’s interviews with Japanese diplomats, thus expanding the qualitative aspect of existing research. It also points to the importance of administrative executives at the interface among the Kantei, the MOFA, and the MOD, which should warrant a significant level of analysis to aid in explaining Japan’s regional strategy shift.
    Nov. 2022, Japan....: Politik, Wirtschaft und Gesellschaft
    Scientific journal

  • Changing Perceptions among Japanese policymakers and the origins of strategic change towards Asia
    David Adebahr
    Munich: Iudicium, Nov. 2022, Japan 2022: Politics, Economy and Society, 166 - 191, German, International magazine
    [Refereed]
    Scientific journal

  • The domestic foundations of Tokyo’s changing security policy strategy towards the Asia-Pacific in the 21st century and the role of Japan’s Foreign Policy Executive
    David Adebahr
    Jul. 2019, Kyoto University, English
    [Refereed]
    Doctoral thesis

  • David Adebahr
    Jun. 2018, Japan Studies Association Journal, 15, 163 - 184, English
    [Refereed]
    Scientific journal

  • David Adebahr
    Nov. 2017, Japan ...: Politik, Wirtschaft und Gesellschaft, International magazine
    Scientific journal

  • Tokyo’s new security towards Asia Pacific: a comparative analysis of current developments in Japan’s regional security policy
    David Adebahr
    Aug. 2017, Japan 2017: Politics, Economy, Society, 96 - 124, German
    [Refereed]
    Scientific journal

  • Turning to Asia: Is Abe’s security policy altering the strategic scope of Japan’s defense strategy?
    David Adebahr
    Jun. 2017, International Studies Association International Conference 2017 Preceedings, 1 - 25, English
    International conference proceedings

  • Japan's Security Police in the 21st century : new implications for an old strategy?
    David Adebahr
    Dec. 2013, Acta Asiatica Varsoviensia, 26, 195 - 213, English
    [Refereed]
    Scientific journal

  • David Adebahr
    Sep. 2013, Japan ...: Politik, Wirtschaft und Gesellschaft, German, International magazine
    Scientific journal

  • Japan’s changing security policy in view of a new East Asian security architecture
    David Adebahr
    Aug. 2013, Japan 2013: Politics, Economy, Society, 2013, 125 - 148, German
    [Refereed]
    Scientific journal

■ Lectures, oral presentations, etc.
  • “From Strategic Vision to Practice: Japan-Germany–EU Cooperation in the Indo-Pacific”
    David Adebahr
    "Security Policy Frameworks in the Asia Pacific – implications for Germany and Europe", Konrad Adenauer Stiftung Tokyo, Nov. 2025, English
    [Invited]
    Invited oral presentation

  • Emerging Security Initiatives by (Non-)Asian Middle Powers in the Indo-Pacific: The Case of German-Japanese Cooperation
    David Adebahr
    4th EAJS Japan Conference at Tohoku University, Sep. 2025, English
    Oral presentation

  • Japan's (inter)nationalization tendencies within the liberal international order
    David Adebahr
    German Japanese Studies Triannual Conference, Aug. 2025, English
    Keynote oral presentation

  • "Japanese Foreign Policy in the Pacific Century"
    David Adebahr
    Public Lecture University of Tennessee at Kobe University, May 2025, English
    Keynote oral presentation

  • Japan’s Emphasis on ‘the Rule of Law’ in Foreign Policy: Navigating Indo-Pacific Challenges
    David Adebahr
    2023年度連続研究会第４回平和と共生の政治学―国家中心主義を超えて―, Jan. 2024

  • “How do intervening variables influence decision making processes? Analyzing Japanese foreign policy”
    David Adebahr
    German Association for Social Science Research on Japan Annual Conference, Nov. 2023, English
    Oral presentation

  • Japan’s new Pacific-Strategy: Adjusting Realpolitik or comprehensive strategic transformation?
    David Adebahr
    Goethe University Frankfurt Insititute for Japanese Studies, Apr. 2023, German
    [Invited]
    Invited oral presentation

  • “The securitization of the Arctic? Analyzing Japan’s current foreign policy strategy towards the Artic Ocean”
    64th International Studies Association Annual Convention, Mar. 2023, English
    Oral presentation

  • Rivalry in the Pacific and Japan’s new regional security strategy for the 21st century
    David Adebahr
    34. Deutscher Orientalistentag, Sep. 2022, English
    Oral presentation

  • Perceptions matter! Analyzing the role of state-level decision-makers in Japan’s regional security cooperation in view of the strategic realignment in the Pacific"
    David Adebahr
    18th German Conference on Japanese Studies, Aug. 2022, German
    Oral presentation

  • Great Power Rivalry and Middle-Power Strategies in Contemporary Asia-Pacific: A neoclassical realist analysis of Japan’s Asia-Pacific strategy
    David Adebahr
    21st Asian Studies Conference Japan, Jul. 2022, English

  • Domestic forces, political agents and power shifts in contemporary Asia Pacific: the case of Japan’s changing Asia strategy
    David Adebahr
    Association for Asian Studies 2022 Annual Conference, Mar. 2022, English
    Oral presentation

  • Japan’s regional security cooperation – A neoclassical realist analysis of Tokyo’s Foreign Policy Executive and the origins of strategic change in the Asia-Pacific
    David Adebahr
    ISA 2021 Annual Convention - April 6th - 9th, 2021, Apr. 2021, English
    Oral presentation

  • Transforming the Pivot into a comprehensive strategy: A neoclassical realist analysis of Japan’s Foreign Policy Executive and the quest for a proactive security policy in the Asia-Pacific (conference cancelled due to Covid19)
    David Adebahr
    International Studies Association Annual Convention 2020, Mar. 2020, English
    Oral presentation

  • Japan’s security initiatives in the Asia-Pacific: new perspectives on regional cooperation and the role of Tokyo’s Foreign Policy Executive
    David Adebahr
    Symposium by the Study Group on History and International Relations at Waseda University, Oct. 2019, English
    [Invited]
    Invited oral presentation

  • Japan’s new proactive security policy strategy in the Pacific: Between bureaucratic pragmatism and political distortion: A neoclassical realist analysis
    David Adebahr
    The 3rd European Association of Japanese Studies Japan Conference, Sep. 2019, English
    Oral presentation

  • Return to Asia? A case study of Japan’s security initiatives in the Asia Pacific
    David Adebahr
    The 15th Asia Pacific Conference 2017、Center for Asia Pacific Studies, Ritsumeikan Asia Pacific University, Nov. 2017
    Oral presentation

  • Introducing a new strategic approach by orienting ‘south’? Testing strategic elements in Japan’s evolving security policy for Asia
    David Adebahr
    The 21st Asian Studies Conference Japan (ASCJ 2017), Jul. 2017

  • Turning to Asia: Is Abe’s Security Policy Altering the Strategic Scope of Japan’s Defense Strategy? – a neoclassical case study of Japan’s institutionalized security strategy in Southeast Asia
    David Adebahr
    International Studies Association (ISA) International Conference 2017, Jun. 2017, English

  • Altering the strategic scope of Japan’s foreign policy? An empirical analysis of shifts in Japan’s military strategy towards Southeast Asia
    David Adebahr
    New England Association for Asian Studies Annual Conference: “Asia: Past, Present, Future”, Jan. 2017, English

  • Counterbalancing Emerging Risks: On the significance of strategic adjustment in Japan’s Foreign Policy towards Southeast Asia
    David Adebahr
    23rd Annual Japan Studies Association Conference, Jan. 2017, English
    Oral presentation

  • How Much New Makes a Change? Implications of (Strategic) Changes in Japan’s Current Foreign and Security Policy
    David Adebahr
    2nd Asia Pacific Conference on Security & International Relations, Osaka University, Dec. 2016, English
    Oral presentation

  • Japan’s pivot south? – How Tokyo is changing its regional security policy
    David Adebahr
    2nd European Association for Japanese Studies (EAJS) Japan Conference, Sep. 2016

  • Abe’s ‘pivot south’ – implications for Japan’s current security policy in Asia
    David Adebahr
    Joint East Asian Studies Conference 2016 The School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London, Sep. 2016, English
    Oral presentation

  • Cooperation, strategic distrust and misperception – Japanese foreign policy and its military and economic implications
    David Adebahr
    16. Deutschsprachiger Japanologentag [German speaking Japanese studies conference], Aug. 2015, German
    Oral presentation

  • The Role of Domestic Factors for Evaluating Recent Changes in Japanese Self-assertive Policy
    David Adebahr
    11th Annual Nordic Association for the Study of Contemporary Japanese Society Conference, Mar. 2015, English
    Oral presentation

  • Current security issues in East Asia and their impact on Japanese foreign policy
    David Adebahr
    32nd German Oriental Studies Conference, Sep. 2013, German
    Oral presentation

  • “Japan’s security policy prospects for the 21st Century”
    David Adebahr
    Japan Center University Munich Summer Lecture Series Japan, Aug. 2013, German
    Invited oral presentation

  • “Tokyo’s (missing?) strategy and Japan’s quest of ‘rebalancing’ the East Asian security architecture”
    David Adebahr
    Researching Japan in Social Sciences & Humanities Conference, Apr. 2013, English
    Oral presentation

  • From bandwagoning to global responsibility? Japan’s security constrains in the ‘pacific century’
    David Adebahr
    15th Annual Graduate Strategic Studies Conference at Center for Military and Strategic Studies, University of Calgary, Mar. 2013, English
    Oral presentation

■ Affiliated Academic Society
  • 日本国政政治学会
    Apr. 2021 - Present

  • ドイツ語圏日本研究学会
    Apr. 2016 - Present

  • Association of Asian Studies
    Apr. 2016 - Present

  • International Studies Association
    Apr. 2014 - Present

  • Vereinigung für sozialwissenschaftliche Japanforschung
    Apr. 2014 - Present

■ Research Themes
  • 若手研究者スタートアップ研究費（I期、II期）
    David Adebahr
    Kyoto University, 「２１世紀初頭のアジア太平洋における勢⼒均衡の変化と⽇本の新たな安全保障政策戦略：国家安全保障政策の変化に関わる要因と対外政策責任者の役割について」, Apr. 2020 - Mar. 2021, Principal investigator

  • 「太平洋の世紀」における日米同盟の戦略的再編を背景とした日本の安全保障政策の動向
    David Adebahr
    Japan Society for the Promotion of Science, Grants-in-Aid for Scientific Research Grant-in-Aid for JSPS Fellows, Grant-in-Aid for JSPS Fellows, Kyoto University, Apr. 2016 - Mar. 2019, Principal investigator
    The research project has thus far conducted a neoclassical realist analysis of Japan's elite bureaucrats in MOFA and MOD and their role in changing the country's security policy in the Asia-Pacific towards a more self-assertive posture. It was mainly the strategy of establishing new security relationships with Southeast Asian countries, developed by MOFA’s Asia and Oceania Bureau after 2005, that changed Japan’s regional security policy strategy further towards assertiveness in the attempt to balance Chinese increasing assertiveness. Together with MOFA’s Southeast Asia Division Deputy Director, the Asia and Oceania Affairs Bureau and these realist bureaucrats began to seek to balance Chinese military and naval presence by expanding and diversifying Japan’s regional security cooperation. The process-tracing analysis has presented strong findings to support the hypothesis that it was mainly the strategy of establishing new security relationships with Southeast Asian countries, developed by MOFA’s Asia and Oceania Bureau after 2005, that changed Japan’s regional security policy strategy further towards assertiveness in the attempt to balance Chinese increasing assertiveness towards the Asia-Pacific. The three regional case studies in chapter three offered insight into the mechanisms that have led to the expansion of Japan’s security policy efforts in the Asia-Pacific after 2005.

  • Forschungsstipendium (2 Jahre)
    David Adebahr
    DAAD Postgraduierten und Doktoranden Foerderung, Postgradutierten Stipendium. Forschen in Japan, Apr. 2014 - Mar. 2016

  • Japan's security policy transformation in the 21st century and the U.S.-Japan alliance
    David Adebahr
    Japan Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology, ２０１４年度国費外国人留学生 文部科学省奨学金, Kyoto University Graduate School of Law, Apr. 2014 - Mar. 2016, Principal investigator

■ Academic Contribution Activities
  • 19th German Japanese Studies Conference 2025 （議長）
    19th German Japanese Studies Conference 2025 （議長）
    Frankfurt University
    20 Aug. 2025 - 22 Aug. 2025
    Competition etc

  • Commentator for オーラルヒストリーを活用する政治史の再考：湾岸危機（1990-91）における日本の非軍事的役割
    Commentator for オーラルヒストリーを活用する政治史の再考：湾岸危機（1990-91）における日本の非軍事的役割
    Kobe University
    03 Jul. 2024
    Academic society etc

  • Book Proposal Review for Routledge Publishers
    Book Proposal Review for Routledge Publishers
    Routledge Publishers
    01 Jul. 2024
    Peer review etc

  • German Association for Social Science Research on Japan Year Book Reviewer 2018
    German Association for Social Science Research on Japan Year Book Reviewer 2018
    01 Mar. 2018 - 01 Mar. 2019
    Peer review etc

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