Abstract
Understanding Public Diplomacy in East Asia: Middle Powers in a Troubled Region, edited by Jan Melissen and Yul Sohn, tasks itself with introducing readers to the presence of, and differing uses for, public diplomacy in East Asia. This edited volume is comprehensive in both geographic scope and analytical breadth and, with several thematic chapters and six case studies, largely succeeds at its appointed task.
This volume is timely, considering the waning power of the United States, concurrent rise of China and the growing numbers of middle power actors in East Asia. Through the use of public diplomacy, East Asian states are increasingly seeking to advance their interests in bilateral dialogues and multinational forums by proactively informing and influencing the opinions of foreign publics. As the editors acknowledge, public diplomacy strategies in East Asia are diverse and vary widely between nations. The editors address this by avoiding a monolithic definition of public diplomacy and instead embracing the diversity of definitions as a premise for their edition with the volume structured as a collection of relatively free-standing essays.
The first section of this manuscript, particularly Yul Sohn’s chapter on regionalization and regionalism, outlines the differing strategies under which public diplomacy is employed. It presents both the ‘win–win’ viewpoint, with proponents arguing that public diplomacy is mutually beneficial and serves to enhance understanding between countries. It also addresses the lesser examined facets of public diplomacy that are characterized as ‘zero sum’, with communications to foreign publics used to undermine the diplomatic and strategic interests of other states. For example, Japan’s regional rivals, China and South Korea, have proactively endorsed an aggressive and militaristic ‘image’ of Japan with the intent of making it more difficult for Japan to pursue its foreign policy goals (pp. 23–26).
This volume does a good job of giving equal weight to the differing perspectives of countries across the region, and providing a nice counterpoint to the overabundance of literature currently centred on China. The case study approach is effectively used to allow a more focused and nuanced view of individual state’s public diplomacy interests and efforts. For instance, analysis at this level makes it possible for readers to understand that Japan’s public diplomacy is geared towards countering anti-Japanese rhetoric from its neighbours.
Importantly, sections in several of the chapters acknowledge that public diplomacy is directly impacted by a nation’s domestic politics. The chapter on Indonesia, for example, demonstrates how the country has had to focus so closely on resolving domestic matters that it has not been able to develop a strong public diplomacy agenda. Alternatively, China has actively used its public diplomacy, particularly vilifying Japan, in order to foster nationalism and bolster support among its domestic constituents.
While the book as a whole offers a comprehensive overview, there were several standout chapters which deserve particular mention. First is the chapter by Andrew F. Cooper. This chapter closely examines the concept of ‘middle powers’ and delineates between what the author identifies as traditional middle powers such as Canada and non-traditional powers like South Korea. Cooper persuasively argues that South Korea has both borrowed strategies from traditional middle powers as well as forged its own path on the international stage. In my view, the most salient point of this article is the observation that middle power influence is finite and that as more countries can stake claim to this title, the influence of traditional middle powers is diluted. Thus, while forums such as the G20 can be seen as opportunities for non-traditional middle powers to gain influence, this enhanced impact at the expense of the influence of other countries. This analysis, when seen in the larger picture of regional change, reinforces the importance of public diplomacy as an important political tool available to East Asian states in pursuit of their foreign policy interests.
A second standout chapter is that by Sook Jong Lee on South Korea. This chapter provides a clear timeline for the evolution of South Korea’s public diplomacy and the influence of its historical circumstances on how it seeks to portray itself to foreign audiences. In line with Cooper’s chapter discussed earlier, this chapter adeptly links South Korea’s recent investments in public diplomacy with its ambitions to secure its role as a middle power and increase its influence in multilateral institutions. It also goes further to identify other means (soft power and network power) that South Korea has used to push its middle power diplomacy. Most interestingly, Lee is able to provide concrete examples of South Korean ministries that are involved in public diplomacy efforts. This is a level of granularity not offered in most of the other case studies and demonstrates, at least implicitly, how institutionalized mechanisms of public diplomacy have been effective in strengthening South Korea’s middle power diplomacy efforts.
Yoshihide Soeya’s chapter on Japan is the last chapter I will mention individually. Starting just after World War II, Japan is one of the few countries in East Asia with a long history of public diplomacy. This chapter is memorable because it pays particular attention to the ‘zero sum’ and competitive aspects of public diplomacy. Japanese public diplomacy historically targeted audiences in the United States and relied heavily on cultural exchange. Providing a chronological view, this chapters traces how, over the past several decades, Japanese public diplomacy has shifted to focus on Asia as it has struggled to overcome is negative historical image. While Japan has sought to put forth an image of pacifism and democracy, it has also had to counter the image of empire building and militarization propagated by its neighbours. Though it is not the only example provided within this book, Soeya’s chapter offers the clearest instance in the region where other nations have actively sought to undercut a nation’s soft power through the use of public diplomacy.
Despite solid introductory and concluding chapters, the manuscript occasionally struggles to hang together. The wide geographic scope, while overall an asset to the manuscript, makes it difficult to draw parallels between all of the examples. For instance, the chapter on India seems very far removed from the chapter on Australia, which itself is far (both geographically and politically) from the countries traditionally perceived of as being in East Asia. While I understand that the focus of the manuscript was on middle powers, there would have been value in including additional ASEAN countries such as Singapore or Malaysia. These countries have a ‘middle power’ status in the region, and an examination of their use of public diplomacy would have been informative vis-à-vis the other case studies.
Each chapter also places emphasis on a different aspect of public diplomacy with various authors seemingly using the terms public diplomacy, soft power and foreign policy synonymously. A short section in one of the introductory chapters or a paragraph in each individual chapter identifying how the term ‘public diplomacy’ is used would have been beneficial. There are also a few chapters that only briefly touch on public diplomacy and, given their alternative emphasis on ‘soft power’, would have been more at home in the editors’ previous volume entitled Public Diplomacy and Soft Power in East Asia.
Regardless of these minor criticisms, I enjoyed the diverse array of viewpoints and case studies offered by this volume. Individual chapters are clearly presented and well written, and the manuscript provides an informative and valuable starting point for both politics students and lays audiences interested in the use of public diplomacy in East Asia.