George R. Packard

US-Japanese relations, which have always been volatile, are at present strained by the trade imbalance, and by confused US attitudes to the development of Japanese military capability. Policy-makers in both countries have taken an acrimonious view. Washington seems to lack a Japanese policy, while Tokyo is dominated by the interest-group politics of the LDP factions. Suggests that a permanent 'wise men's commission' be drawn from both sides, to recommend fair solutions to trade issues, thus taking them out of the hands of particular interests.