Experts

Retired General Yamazaki Koji, born in Yamanashi Prefecture, graduated from the National Defense Academy in 1983 and the National Defense University in the United States with a master's degree in national security strategy in 2006.
 

He served in various frontline command positions in the Japan Ground Self-Defense Force (JGSDF), including Northern Army Commanding General, 9th Division Commander, 4th Engineer Group Commander, and Deputy Chief of Staff (Operation) of the Western Army Headquarters. Within the Ministry of Defense, he held roles such as Chief of Staff of the Ground Staff Office (GSO), Director-General of the Personnel Department, and Director of the Logistics Planning Division at GSO. He assumed the position of Chief of Staff of the Joint Staff in 2019, the highest position in the Japan Self-Defense Forces, overseeing domestic and international operations and advising the Defense Minister from a military perspective. He contributed to the formulation of three security-related documents, including the National Security Strategy, which was released at the end of 2022.
 

He is also a recipient of the highest decoration awarded by the governments of the United States, France, and Australia to military personnel of other countries. He retired from the Japan Self-Defense Forces in 2023 with the rank of JGSDF General.
 

Retired General Yamazaki has been serving as an advisor to Mitsui Sumitomo Insurance Co., Ltd. since 2023, an advisor to the Ministry of Defense, a member of the Defense Ministry's "Expert Panel on Fundamental Reinforcement of Defense Capabilities," and in 2024, a member of the Defense Ministry's "Expert Panel on Strengthening the Human Infrastructure of the Ministry of Defense and Self-Defense Forces," and Chairman of the Japan Mine Action Service (JMAS).
 

He has been in his current position at the Sasakawa Peace Foundation since April 2024.