As the fifth in its series "Thinking About Ethnic and National Questions," the Society for the Studies of Nation Issues will hold the Special Lecture "70 Years Since the Second Arab–Israeli War: Reconnecting Nations and International Politics." We have invited Professor Yu Koizumi, a specialist in the military and security policies of Russia and the former Soviet states, and Professor Hiroyuki Suzuki, a specialist in Middle East area studies with a focus on the Palestine question, to give lectures and take part in a panel discussion. In addition to students, faculty, and staff of the University, members of the public are welcome to attend.

Overview

Event	Series "Thinking About Ethnic and National Questions," Fifth Special Lecture "70 Years Since the Second Arab–Israeli War: Reconnecting Nations and International Politics"
Date and time	Thursday, November 12, 2026, scheduled to start at 19:00
Venue	Lecture Hall, B1F, 21KOMCEE West, Komaba I Campus, University of Tokyo (Get off at Komaba-todaimae Station on the Keio Inokashira Line)
Program	Lectures, panel discussion, Q&A
Speakers	Prof. Yu Koizumi (Associate Professor, Research Center for Advanced Science and Technology, University of Tokyo) Prof. Hiroyuki Suzuki (Project Associate Professor, Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, University of Tokyo)
Fee	Free
Organizer	Society for the Studies of Nation Issues

About the Event

This year marks 70 years since the Second Arab–Israeli War (the Suez Crisis) of 1956. In this lecture, we will trace the history of the Arab–Israeli wars and the present situation, and, taking as our clues the shifts in Soviet and Russian influence and their involvement in the Middle East, consider the relationship between nations and international politics.

About the Speakers

Yu Koizumi (小泉 悠)

Associate Professor, Research Center for Advanced Science and Technology, University of Tokyo. He specializes in the military and security policies of Russia and the former Soviet states. Born in Chiba Prefecture in 1982. After completing a master's program at the Graduate School of Waseda University, he worked at a private company and as a specialist analyst for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, among other positions, and joined the Institute for Future Engineering in 2009. During this period, he stayed at the Institute of World Economy and International Relations of the Russian Academy of Sciences on a Ministry of Foreign Affairs fellowship for dispatching young researchers (2010–2011), and was engaged in research on Russian legislative trends at the Research and Legislative Reference Bureau of the National Diet Library (2011–2018). In March 2019, he became a Project Assistant Professor at the Research Center for Advanced Science and Technology, University of Tokyo, and has held his current position since December 2023. In 2025, he founded the general incorporated association DEEP DIVE. His major books include "Teikoku" Roshia no chiseigaku (The Geopolitics of "Imperial" Russia; winner of the Suntory Prize for Social Sciences and Humanities), Ukuraina sensō (The Ukraine War), Okhotsk kaku yōsai (The Okhotsk Nuclear Fortress), and Gendai sensō ron (On Contemporary Warfare).

Hiroyuki Suzuki (鈴木 啓之)

Project Associate Professor, Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, University of Tokyo. He specializes in Middle East area studies, in particular the Palestine question. Born in Kanagawa Prefecture in 1987. Ph.D. (Academic). After serving as a JSPS Postdoctoral Research Fellow (PD) (Japan Women's University) and a JSPS Overseas Research Fellow (Harry S. Truman Research Institute for the Advancement of Peace, Hebrew University), he has held his current position since September 2019. His books include Hōki "Intifāda": Senryōka no Paresuchina 1967–1993 (Uprising "Intifada": Palestine under Occupation, 1967–1993; University of Tokyo Press, 2020; 9th University of Tokyo Press Nanbara Shigeru Memorial Publication Prize). His co-edited and edited volumes include Paresuchina o shiru tame no 60 shō (60 Chapters for Understanding Palestine; Akashi Shoten, 2016), Paresuchina/Isuraeru no "ima" o shiru tame no 24 shō (24 Chapters for Understanding Palestine/Israel "Now"; Akashi Shoten, 2024), and Gaza funsō (The Gaza Conflict; University of Tokyo Press, 2024), and he is a co-translator of Rashid Khalidi's The Hundred Years' War on Palestine (Japanese edition, Hosei University Press, 2023). He is helping out with this event just a little (26K15295).