Abstract
This introduction outlines the EU-Japan relationship and where it stands at present. At the last summit meeting the two sides decided to start parallel negotiations for (1) a deep and comprehensive free-trade agreement or economic partnership agreement; and (2) a binding agreement covering political, security and other areas of global cooperation. Here the factors that have led both the EU and Japan to abandon the former policy of defining the overall relationship with ten-year plans, such as the 1991 Hague Declaration and the 2001 Action Plan, will be analyzed. The present negotiations will be put in historical perspective, and what is new and unique this time will be analyzed. These EU-Japan agreements will be placed in a comparative global perspective relative to other major agreements. Finally, this introduction will also introduce the other articles in this special issue.