Description
The pursuit of Japan's soft power diplomacy in Southeast Asia holds unique changes during the past centuries after the end of World War II. Amid the shifting politics in the region, the term 'soft power' has started to become a crucial component of Japanese foreign policy. In a broader term, the research addresses a big-picture view of the shift in thinking toward the relations between Japan-Thailand that brought about by the changes in Japanese foreign policy and the possibilities for attaining soft power over the past two decades. The core argument of this study is thus to examines the growing presence of Japan on a bilateral scale, with a particular focus on the context of Thailand. It argues that during the last decades, various kind of skillfully crafted soft power has massively penetrated Thailand. Looking at the issue comparatively provides the interpretation of the action of Japan's soft power in Thailand. The increasing Japanese influence in Thailand is largely driven by the changes of geopolitical concerns, international structures and the tool used of soft power. The research reveals the complexities of interaction between Japan and Thailand beyond the usual state-level analyses and offers a valuable resource for the study of Japanese-Thai foreign policy relations. The research analyses by showing how principles of cultural diplomacy and how it has been refined because of its geopolitical given, foreign policy direction within the Japanese political structure. Subsequently, the research concludes that Thailand serves as a useful barometer of evolving Japanese soft power and influence in Southeast Asia. The result is a comprehensive discussion of current foreign policy and receptive to soft power as much as contributing to the debate on soft power balance and dynamics towards the transformation of influences.
