Japan wants a greater role in world affairs, but when the time comes and there are some difficulties in Japan's neighborhood, Japan's not there. Its efforts have been token, at best, and one of the reasons Japan isn't there is it isn't in any financial condition to do so. Fuess said he is disappointed by the crisis, because it shouldn't have to happen. A cause for hope is that it is possible to turn the situation around. A country like Indonesia really doesn't have the ingredients to resurrect its economy.
Japan does - but Japan's in denial.
It's an economy in slow motion that's winding itself down. That's disheartening because it doesn't have to be that way. But as long as it is, Japan can't take any kind of leadership position in Asia or in the world. It can't be relied on to be a partner. In association with the office, the Faculty Liaison Task Force on Diversity invites proposals from members of the NU community for support of projects during the 1998-99 Fiscal Year.