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Italy and Japan: How Similar Are They? pp 307–328Cite as

Hosts and Hostilities: Base Politics in Italy and Japan

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Part of the book series: Perspectives in Business Culture ((PEPIBC))

Abstract

One of the characteristics Japan and Italy shared in the post war period is the presence of a vast network of American bases on their respective sovereign territories. The aim of these bases varied since they were set up. During the early post war period the bases contributed to keeping Washington’s former enemies under control. During the Cold War, they were essential elements of what the literature refers to as ‘double containment’ policy. After the Cold War they became fundamental elements of the American so-called ‘command of the commons’. Even if the purpose of the US bases has been somewhat similar, ‘base politics’ have had a very different impact on Italian and Japanese domestic and foreign policies. In Japan, the opposition has been constant and intense, while in Italy US military presence was in essence welcome. In this chapter, I will highlight how dynamics related to local, domestic and international politics determined these different approaches to the presence of US military bases in Italy and Japan.

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Notes

  1. 1.

    The first version treaty was adopted in 1952 and then revised in 1960.

  2. 2.

    The INF treaty established that the US and the USSR committed themselves to remove the middle range missile from Europe within ten years.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Linguistics and Comparative Cultural Studies, University of Venice Ca’ Foscari, Venice, Italy

    Matteo Dian

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  1. Matteo Dian
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Correspondence to Matteo Dian .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Political and Social Sciences, University of Pavia, Pavia, Italy

    Silvio Beretta

  2. Department of Political and Social Sciences, University of Pavia, Pavia, Italy

    Axel Berkofsky

  3. Department of Political and Social Sciences, University of Pavia, Pavia, Italy

    Fabio Rugge

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Dian, M. (2014). Hosts and Hostilities: Base Politics in Italy and Japan. In: Beretta, S., Berkofsky, A., Rugge, F. (eds) Italy and Japan: How Similar Are They?. Perspectives in Business Culture. Springer, Milano. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-88-470-2568-4_18

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