Welcome this show's east-most episode recorded so far! For the next half an hour, we will be looking at Eurasia from Tokyo with a rather special guest: **Professor Tomohiko Taniguchi, a speechwriter and special advisor to Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe.** Professor Taniguchi also serves as a [tenured professor at Keio University](http://www.sdm.keio.ac.jp/en/voice/taniguchi.html) in Tokyo, Japan (and where Olesya, our interviewer, is based until January). Throughout his professional career, professor Taniguchi has changed his location multiple times, working as a researcher and journalist in several reputable institutions worldwide including [Nikkei Business](https://business.nikkei.com/), [Brookings Institution](https://www.brookings.edu/author/tomohiko-taniguchi/), Foreign Press Association, Princeton University and Shanghai Institute of International Studies. In 2005, professor Taniguchi joined Japan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs and started writing speeches for then-foreign minister Taro Aso, and subsequently PM Shinzo Abe.  **How difficult is it – to write a speech for the highest political figure in the country? How does Japanese government view developments in the Asian region, and where does it see its place? What is needed to encourage more Japanese companies to take part in the maritime and overland connectivity projects in Eurasia?** We hope you will enjoy our guest's reflections on these questions as he is unweiling for us this mysterious island nation at the Eastern edge of the Asia Pacific. See you in the next episode!