Next-Generation Power for Japanese Submarines

Join a seminar bringing together leading scholars and policy experts to discuss developments in propulsion technology for submarines in the Indo-Pacific. Japan is revising its National Security Strategy and supporting documents this year, as Australia continues to work toward nuclear-powered submarines within the AUKUS framework, and as the Republic of Korea has reportedly received permission from the Trump Administration to pursue its own nuclear-powered submarines. Meanwhile, the Japanese ruling coalition has formally stated an interest in “next generation power” for submarines. What benefits and costs does Japan need to account for as it considers next-generation power for submarines? Experts will share U.S. and Australian experience in laying the groundwork for such a capability, and consider some of the strategic implications. Following short remarks by each panelist, the moderator will lead a focused discussion and a 30–40-minute Q&A with the audience.

Panelists:

Professor Jon Caverley, Visiting Fellow, International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS)/Professor, U.S. Naval War College (on leave).

Captain Joshua Wilkinson, RAN – Defense Attache, Australian Embassy Tokyo, Royal Australia Navy submarine officer

Professor KOTANI Tetsuo, Meikai University/Chief Research Fellow, JIIA

YCAPS is glad to partner with Kreab Tokyo to deliver this opportunity

Kreab is a world-class communications consulting firm founded in Stockholm, Sweden in 1970. Since its opening in 1985, Kreab Inc., the Tokyo office, has been providing consulting services to a wide range of clients, making full use of its network that connects 30 countries around the world. Kreab supports communications activities with three core business areas: public relations, government relations, and global risk management. This includes extensive experience helping the Japanese government with its global PR efforts. More information is available at https://kreab.com/tokyo/ja/

Registration here to attend.

*RSVP and confirmation is mandatory for attendance

Schedule :

18:00-18:30: Light refreshments & Networking

18:30: Welcoming Remarks

18:35-1905: Moderated panel discussion

19:05: Q&A with members of the audience

19:40: Wrap up and thanks

19:45: All activities finished

Date: Wednesday, December 10, 2025

Time: 18:00 refreshments, 18:30 Seminar start

Language: English

Venue: Kreab Tokyo: Atago Green Hills MORI Tower 11F, 2-5-1 Atago, Minato-ku, Tokyo 105-6211

Google Maps: https://maps.app.goo.gl/eW37EsN43Kn6zFJh6

Panelists:

Professor Jon Caverley is a visiting Senior Fellow at the International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS), where he is completing a book on the global defense industrial base with support from the Defense Security Cooperation University. He is on leave as a professor in the Strategic & Operational Research Department of the Naval War College’s Center for Naval Warfare Studies. He recently served as the interim Director of the Naval War College Press.

An expert on naval force design, Dr. Caverley was the inaugural director of the Bernard Brodie Strategy Group from 2020 to 2022, and is a Research Affiliate in the Security Studies Program at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. His Ph.D. and M.P.P. are from the University of Chicago, and he received his A.B. in History and Literature from Harvard College. Prior to his academic career, Caverley was a U.S. Navy submarine officer.

Captain Josh Wilkinson has been the Defence Attaché to Japan since July 2023. As the Head of Australian Defence Staff – Tokyo, he leads a team that is engaged with all aspects of the Australia-Japan defence relationship.

Captain Wilkinson has had a series of postings in Japan, including the Advanced Course of the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force Command and Staff College, the National Institute of Defense Studies General Course. From 2019 to 2021 he was the inaugural Chief of Staff in the expanded Defence Section of the Australian Embassy Tokyo.

Captain Wilkinson has previously served in sea-going roles on the Collins Class submarines, HMAS Rankin and HMAS Farncomb. He also completed an operational deployment to the Persian Gulf in 2001 onboard the frigate HMAS Anzac. Ashore, he has worked in submarine projects and explosive ordnance technical regulation including postings in the United States, United Kingdom and Belgium.

Captain Wilkinson joined the Royal Australian Navy in 1997. He has a Bachelor of Engineering (Computer Systems) with Honours from the University of Tasmania, a Master of Science in Explosive Ordnance Engineering from the Royal Military College of Science and a Master of Arts in Strategy and Policy from the University of New South Wales.

Professor KOTANI Tetsuo is a professor at Meikai University and a chief research fellow at the Japan Institute of International Affairs (JIIA). His research focus is Japan’s foreign/security policy, the US-Japan alliance, and international relations and maritime security in the Indo-Pacific region. He won the 2003 Japanese Defense Minister Prize. He has published numerous articles both in English and Japanese, and his recent English publications include “Crisis Management in the East China Sea” (SIPRI Policy Brief, 2015) and “China’s Military and Paramilitary Activities in the East China Sea: Implications for the U.S.-Japan Alliance” (National Bureau of Asian Research, 2020). He received a master’s degree from Doshisha University.

Cost: Free of charge

Moderator: Jim Hartman, YCAPS Senior Research Fellow

Format: This event will be off-the-record. Questions are encouraged.

Registration: Required. Please use this link to RSVP for in-person attendance

Co-Sponsors: Kreab Tokyo