Japan’s Cultural Diplomacy In The Middle East:Policy And Practice

In terms of today’s international relations,each country need to interact with the international community by diversified diplomacy.Compared with political,economic,or military diplomacy,cultural diplomacy may not get expected influence immediately.But from a long-term perspective,as a "soft power",cultural diplomacy has many positive potential effects,which is a characteristic that directly economic diplomacy or rigidly political,military diplomacy does not have.In addition,in the context of globalization,culture is also fused with economy.And the cultural industry has become a pillar industry for the international development of many countries.Therefore,it has a practical significance to study the overall layout of cultural diplomacy deeply.In the early post-World War II period,Japan put mainly attention on the development of “the US-Japan alliance” and seldom conducted any cultural interaction with the Middle Eastern countries.In fact,Japan ’s cultural diplomacy in the Middle East began after the first oil crisis broke out in 1973.In order to ensure the stability of oil supply,Japan began to develop all-round diplomatic relations with the Middle Eastern countries.In this period,Japan interacted with the Middle Eastern countries main through the Japan Foundation.In the 1980 s,Japan proposed “Political Power Strategy”,and cultural diplomacy began to serve for this goal.In this time,Japan’s cultural diplomacy in the Middle East also entered a golden period;In the 1990 s,Japan experienced a depressed period which is called “Lost Decade”.In this decade,culture diplomacy became one of the breakthroughs of economic development which helped Japan rejuvenate the economy.In the new century,Under the guidance of the strategy of “founding a country by culture”,Japan has opened a comprehensive new pattern of cultural diplomacy in the Middle East.Japanese culture has gradually changed the attitude of Middle Eastern countries to Japan and influenced the people’s lifestyle in the Middle East by academic and personnel communication,education and cultural assistance,cultural and sports activities,and the popularization of animation,film and television works.As it turns out that after the war II,Japan’s cultural diplomacy in the Middle East achieved certain results.Besides achieving the purpose of deepening understanding,it also brought a series of earnings,such as guarantees for stable oil supply,development of cultural industries,enhancement of international influence,and relief of domestic crisis.It has two reasons about that,the overall cultural diplomacy strategy at the national level is one hand,and the development of cultural elements and cultural industries with national characteristics is another hand.As a country with scarce natural resources,Japan has promoted the development of related fields through culture,and found a breakthrough that suits itself.Nowadays,Japan’s cultural diplomacy is in full swing not only in the Middle East,but also around the world.It can be said that Japan’s cultural diplomacy is at the forefront of the world and has certainly referential significance.