On October 27th, 2022, Dr. Nadejda Petrova Gadjeva, a researcher at Ritsumeikan University, gave a lecture on Japan’s public diplomacy in Europe for the event hosted by the Institute of International Relations and Area Studies at Ritsumeikan University. Her lecture is based on her recent book, “Japanese Public Diplomacy in European Countries: The Japan Foundation in Bulgaria and France,” published in 2022.

Dr. Gadjeva argued that for Japan’s public diplomacy to be effective and successful, a central actor that facilitates and coordinates cooperation between various public and private actors engaged in public diplomacy is essential. She showed that the Japan Foundation could play such a role by using France and Bulgaria as case studies. 

In her lecture, Dr. Gadjeva argued that the Japan Foundation is an ideal organization to be the central actor because of three main reasons: 1) it has the potential to promote “cool Japan”; 2) the organization has been playing a significant role in the dissemination of Japanese culture abroad; 3) it has the broadest long-term interests for Japan that encompass most of the interests pursued by other private and public actors involved in public diplomacy. 

For Dr. Gadjeva, France and Bulgaria are good cases to study Japan’s public diplomacy in Europe as there is a vast difference in the level of success between the two countries. In France, Japanese culture has been successfully promoted to a greater extent than in other countries on the continent. On the other hand, although Bulgaria has robust and active bilateral cultural relations with Japan, Japan’s public diplomacy has not been as effective as it could be.

Additionally, Dr. Gadjeva explained the research methods she used to study Japan's public diplomacy in Europe. She mentioned that she interviewed French and Bulgarian government officials, scholars in the field, and young and middle-aged citizens of France and Bulgaria interested in Japan’s public diplomacy. She also analyzed thousands of project documents by the Japan Foundation to assess the effectiveness of Japan’s public diplomacy in those European countries.  

The lecture concluded with a vibrant Q&A session, during which members of the audience asked interesting questions, such as those regarding the challenges she faced in conducting interviews with government officials in Bulgaria and France and the motivation of the Japanese government to engage in public diplomacy in Europe. 

Written by Yusy Widarahesty and Daichi Morishige (Doctoral Students at the Graduate School of International Relations, Ritsumeikan University)