Learn about recent developments in U.S.-Japan relations — and how they affect North Texas. Experts from both countries will examine the state of the relationship as the new U.S. administration assumes power. The afternoon panel will look at the importance of mobility in the globalized world and the potential impact in Texas of the nation's first high-speed passenger train.

Grant Newsham, senior research fellow at the Japan Forum for Strategic Studies, will speak about the crucial U.S.-Japan security alliance and the challenges the new administration may face in the Asia-Pacific region. Newsham, a retired U.S. Marine colonel, was the first Marine liaison officer to the Japan Ground Self-Defense Force. He lived in Tokyo for twenty years and has served on two occasions as the Marine attaché at the U.S. Embassy in Tokyo.