Axel Karlsson was an intern at the ISDP Stockholm Japan Center and previously studied military history at the Swedish Defence University. His dissertation aimed to explain interservice rivalry between the respective branches of the Swedish military during the Cold War. During his studies he came across literature detailing the rivalry between the Japanese army and navy during WW2 and the era of political assassinations that came with it. This sparked further interest towards learning more of Japanese history and contemporary implications and development. Axel’s main interests are war, armed and un-armed conflicts, security strategies and foreign policy.