Lieutenant Colonel Shinjiro Hirashima is a Visiting Fellow at the Stimson Center with East Asia/Japan Program, on assignment from the Japan Ground Self-Defense Force (JGSDF). He is an Infantry Officer and currently an Instructor at the Training, Evaluation, Research and Development Command (TERCOM) of the JGSDF. His military assignment covers international security cooperation and disaster relief operations. He holds a Bachelor’s degree in Sociology from Japan National Defense Academy in Yokosuka. He is also a graduate of the Expeditionary Warfare School of the U.S. Marine Corps in Quantico, and the Command and General Staff Course of JGSDF Staff College in Tokyo.
LTC Hirashima served in the 16th Infantry Regiment, the 14th Infantry Regiment, Staff College, the Peace Keeping Operation Office in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Japan-U.S. defense cooperation office of the Policy & Program Department (G-5) of the Ground Staff Office, and the annual program planning office, G-5 of the GSO. He is airborne jumper and ranger instructor qualified.
He has a variety of experiences in international exchanges. He has attended various international conferences on PKO as a subject-matter expert, such as the Peacekeeping Chief of Defense Staff Conference in New York and the Preparatory Meetings for UN Peacekeeping Defense Ministerial Conference in Tokyo. He also was in charge of the action officers for Japan-U.S. top bilateral meetings, such as the high-level talk between the Chief of Staff of JGSDF and the Chief of Staff of the U.S. Army in 2019, and between the CoS, JGSDF, and the Commanding General of the U.S. Army in Pacific (USARPAC).
