Japan's soft power in foreign policy

In the modern world, several mechanisms and means are expanding, with the help of which it is possible to influence international relations and politics in general. If earlier economic potential and military power were attributed to the main components of policy, today it is believed that cultural diplomacy implies a more effective method of influence. In this connection, the American political scientist Joseph Nye created the concept of “soft power”, the main meaning of which is the formation of attractive power. As noted in his book “Soft Power. The components of success in world politics”, the author of the concept, “soft power” contains two components: the influence and the attractiveness of “attractive power”. Joseph Nye singled out several main components through which any state can influence on the picture of the world: cultural, moral, and political values, information (without the information discourse created by the media, it is impossible to achieve the results of the influence of “soft power”) and foreign policy.

The question arises as to which country, excluding the United States of America, has the most developed system of spreading influence over various countries and regions using the mechanisms of “soft power”. In my opinion, the answers are various such as Germany, UK, or France. In Asia, we can list South Korea, Japan, Singapore,...We would like to concentrate on the Land of the Rising Sun - Japan.

It should be noted that Japan is the third largest economy in the world by GDP (after the United States and China) and, even though it also has a powerful military potential, it is one of the leading players spreading its “soft power” in the field of diplomacy and culture. Most researchers classify Japan as such a category of countries that have the greatest number of mechanisms and resources for the implementation of “soft power”.

Of course, Japan lags the American model of spreading influence through the components of “soft power”, where the main elements are the image of freedom and democracy, the widespread use of English in the world, the promotion of education and internships in American universities, and the “Work & travel” program. Nevertheless, the Land of the Rising Sun also promotes various projects to strengthen international authority, since the Japanese government, interested in the inflow of investments from partner countries, clearly realizes that for this it is necessary to deepen cultural exchange, and, accordingly, to a greater extent to spread values and language to maintain the level of trust that exists today. Thus, the main goal of attracting soft power funds is to promote a positive image of Japanese society abroad as part of the general course of diplomacy.

The JET (The Japan Exchange and Teaching) program, which provides an opportunity to teach or help organize international exchange programs in Japan, can be considered a typical initiative in which Japan is investing hugely. This effective tool has created thousands of people around the world, who themselves have become fans of Japanese traditions and culture in general and attract other people to feel the “taste of Japan”. There are other study programs provided by the government, ministries and various centers (MEXT, scholarship program supported by the Asian Development Bank, postgraduate scholarships in Japan for women).

As the researchers note, projects related to educational activities create the most long-term results for joint cooperation, growth and security, since it is the provision of educational services to students that is one of the most important tools of the “soft power” of the state: young people acquire values and a new view of the world, and returning home, becomes a conductor of the culture of another country, which turns out to be much more effective than the use of rigid levers of influence on the minds of citizens. Thus, soft power diplomacy manipulates public consciousness in order to build a harmonious world.

Of course, the specially created program “Cool Japan”, which is aimed at increasing the export of national cuisine, martial arts of Japan, and the main element of modern culture - anime and manga, should not be left without mention. You can draw a parallel with the English term “Cool Britannia”, which characterizes the pride of the people for their achievements in the cultural sphere. As for the phrase “Cool Japan”, it was first mentioned by Douglas McGray in the article “Japan's Gross National Cool” in journal of foreign policy in November 2009 , where the author talked about the influence of Japan on the modern world on the example of selling products of the popular brand “Hello Kitty”, which collects annually almost a billion dollars in profit. It is worth noting that Japanese officials even placed bets on the program “Cool Japan”, because in 2010 the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry of Japan opened a new department (Office for the Promotion of the Creative Economy), the main goal of which is to promote economic development, as well as increase jobs, which is an urgent problem with - temporality, due to the tool of the creative economy. Thus, the industry of Japanese TV shows, music, dramas, anime, fashion remains competitive in the market and is popular with Western and Asian consumers.

The state is also aware of the need to attract instruments of “soft power” to the economic sphere, because the cultural component is directly related to business. According to the “Soft Power 30 - 2018” rating, Japan rose from eighth place in 2015 to fifth place. The concept of “Made in Japan” is associated all over the world with the quality and reliability of products, which results in a situation where, despite the high price, it is in great demand (Kenzo, Snidel, Toyota, Shiseido, Sharp, Panasonic).

The Olympic Games in Tokyo 2020 attract public attention, which provides an opportunity to deepen cultural ties with the whole world for further communication. According to data collected by the Japanese company JTB Tourism Research & Consulting Co, Japan in 2018 was visited by 31,191,856 people, making it one of the most popular tourist destinations in the world.

It is worth noting the role of Japan in providing financial and humanitarian aid. Japan is the second largest contributor to the United Nations after the United States of America, and ranks 5th in providing funds to the UN Refugee Agency (in 2018, it provided assistance in the amount of US $ 117,208,993). Thus, the mechanism of “soft power” is the main component of the multifaceted Japanese diplomacy.

Pic Courtesy-Jezael Melgoza at unsplash.com

(The views expressed are those of the author and do not represent views of CESCUBE.)