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Yusuke Ishikawa

Associate Research Fellow

ishikawa_yusuke@shikon.meiji.ac.jp

Yusuke Ishikawa

Associate Research Fellow

ishikawa_yusuke@shikon.meiji.ac.jp

Yusuke Ishikawa is Research Fellow and Digital Communications Officer at the Institute of Geoeconomics, International House of Japan. He also serves as External Contributor for Transparency International's Anti-Corruption Helpdesk and as Part-time Lecturer in European affairs at Saitama Gakuen University. His research focuses on CEE politics (particularly Hungarian politics), democratic backsliding, and anti-corruption.

He is the co-author of A Dangerous Confluence: The Intertwined Crises of Disinformation and Democracies (Institute of Geoeconomics, 2024) and contributor to a chapter titled "NGOs, Advocacy, and Anti-Corruption" (In Routledge Handbook of Anti-Corruption Research and Practice, 2025). His commentaries and interviews have also appeared on Foresight, Japan Times, NHK, Neue Zürcher Zeitung (NZZ), Expresso, and more.

Yusuke received his BA in Political Science from Meiji University, Japan, MA in Corruption and Governance (with Distinction) from the University of Sussex, UK, and another MA in Political Science from Central European University, Hungary and Austria.

Policy Paper | Orbán in the public eye: The utilisation of the anti-Ukraine argument in the larger regime narrative for delegitimising Brussels

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1. 12. 2025

This policy paper examines how Ukraine’s prospective EU accession has been turned into a tool of domestic political mobilisation in Hungary. It traces how Viktor Orbán and government communication frame Ukraine as a threat and embed the issue into a broader anti-Brussels narrative built on fears of war, loss of sovereignty, and “foreign values” in the run-up to the 2026 elections.

Foresight | Stalemate in Hungarian Politics: An opposition unable to break through, and a ruling party whose “enemy-creating, denial-driven” narrative no longer resonates with the public

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15. 11. 2025

With six months to go until the 2026 Hungarian parliamentary elections, the political landscape is entering a decisive period. The emerging conservative Tisza party, led by Péter Magyar, continues to challenge the long-standing rule of Viktor Orbán and Fidesz, maintaining strong polling numbers. While Tisza has been effective in shaping the political agenda, Fidesz is attempting to counter with an intensified media strategy and its traditional “enemy-focused” narrative. Support for both sides appears to be stabilizing, leaving the outcome uncertain as the campaign accelerates ahead of April’s vote. The article was written by Yusuke Ishikawa, a non-resident fellow at EUROPEUM.