Hotaka Machida ’s Research

Visiting Senior Research Fellow

MACHIDA Hotaka is a visiting senior research fellow in Institute of Geoeconomics at International House of Japan. He joined the Institute in October, 2022. Prior to leaving his role in government, he served as a career diplomat in Japan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs from 2001 to 2022, focusing on Japan-China relations. He studied at Nanjing University in China and Harvard University in the United States, followed by working at Embassy of Japan in China as second secretary from 2006-2008. After that, he was posted in China-Mongolia division in the Ministry and completed the negotiations with China over the issues of launching the “High-Level Consultation on Maritime Affairs” as well as finalizing the “Maritime Search and Rescue (SAR)” agreement. He also worked in Status of Forces Agreement (SOFA) division in the North America Bureau in the Ministry leading the negotiations with the US on SOFA-related issues. He was counsellor in the Permanent Mission of Japan to the United Nations (2017-2020) and Embassy of Japan in China (2020-2022) covering the Security Council reform and Japan-China economic relations respectively. He holds a M.A from the Graduate School of Arts and Science at Harvard University, and a Bachelor from Law Faculty at Tokyo University.

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Emerging Technology

Do Humanoids Dream of “The Chinese Dream”?

China’s rapid progress in robotics has been remarkable. Scenes of Chinese humanoid robots performing Chinese martial arts alongsid

Visiting Senior Research Fellow

Hotaka Machida

Diplomacy

From “Separating Politics and Economics” to “Balancing Politics and Economics”: Japan-China Relations in the Age of Economic Security

Following President Trump’s visit to China, both Washington and Beijing have begun speaking—in their own respective terms—of const

Visiting Senior Research Fellow

Hotaka Machida

Security

China, Rare Earths and ‘Weaponized Interdependence’

In early September, just days after China marked the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II, Berlin hosted IFA 2025 — one of

Visiting Senior Research Fellow

Hotaka Machida

Security

Can China Become a Defender of Free Trade?

Since the inauguration of the second Trump administration, there has been growing debate about the destabilization of the internat

Visiting Senior Research Fellow

Hotaka Machida

Politics and Economics

Will a ‘low-altitude economy’ make Chinese growth soar again?

As the Chinese economy continues to struggle, Beijing has turned to what it calls a “low-altitude economy” to stimulate growth and

Visiting Senior Research Fellow

Hotaka Machida

Diplomacy

Will Japan and China’s relations continue to stagnate?

Xi Jinping’s government has begun its charm offensive aimed at Japan. At the Japan-South Korea-China summit in Seoul in May, a

Visiting Senior Research Fellow

Hotaka Machida

Diplomacy

‘Offensive’ and ‘defensive’ diplomacy: Managing ties with China

A year has passed since Chinese President Xi Jinping began his norm-breaking third term as Chinese Communist Party (CCP) Secretary

Visiting Senior Research Fellow

Hotaka Machida

Diplomacy

The future lies in helping to make China a responsible superpower

At the Group of Seven leaders summit held in Hiroshima in May, a major hidden agenda item was how to handle China. The G7 leade

Visiting Senior Research Fellow

Hotaka Machida

Diplomacy

Finding a way to manage China’s protectionism in procurement

As a previous article in this series by Naoko Eto pointed out, China’s economic security policy cannot be seen clearly from outsid

Visiting Senior Research Fellow

Hotaka Machida

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