Political Backdrop

2042 is a thoroughly different world, politically, to the one today. The global military flashpoints have moved from the Middle East to Eastern Europe and Indonesia. The newly-reestablished Russian Empire under Tsar Nicholas III is the new economic powerhouse of the world due to its massive methane hydrate reserves. The world's only superpower still retains the title, but its economic strength is mostly focused on repaying the US national debt. The Eurasian Union and the Democratic Republic of China are the world's major trading partners. With a post-industrial economy fueled by the latest nanotechnology from the labs at Los Alamos and Arkhangelsk, global standards of living have never been higher. Poverty has largely been eliminated by the efforts of former Third-World countries bootstrapping their way to a technological society in only a few years.
As for Japan, it's still a technological trailblazer in just about every field there is. The economic situation leaves something to be desired, however, and there is much civil unrest over the island nation's rising population. Japan is no longer the hyper-capitalized free-market paradise it was in the 2020s and 30s. With more and more companies folding into huge conglomerates to avoid bankruptcy, these monolithic corporations are finding themselves with huge amounts of influence over political proceedings. For instance, the pro-JSDF cause in the Diet is mainly funded by Gensai Corporation, the military contracting conglomerate that is responsible for over 60% of JSDF supply contracts. The NSF receive quiet sponsorship from the ubiquitous Tahki Media Group, the largest multimedia and entertainment provider in the Pacific Rim. It's a brave new world where the line between policy and corruption is redrawn every day.