ABSTRACT
This chapter tests the applicability of soft power for Japanese foreign policy, and more generally, by focusing on Taiwan as a case of success. This case also demonstrates the outer limits of soft power. Japan is liked in Taiwan to a degree that is remarkable, not only for East Asia, where Japan has reputational problems stemming from its pre-1945 behavior, but also for Japan outside of East Asia, or for any major power anywhere. Japan’s soft power in Taiwan results from several factors. First, it results from personal and group memories of Japan’s rule, a rule more fondly remembered later than it was in 1945. Second, the bad experiences native Taiwanese had with mainlander KMT rule, who they initially greeted as liberating “compatriot” Chinese, made many nostalgic for Japanese rule. A third factor is the wave of attractive Japanese culture since the 1980s, imports that have influenced younger Taiwanese. A fourth factor is the presence of local elites promoting Japan’s attractiveness. As a result of Japan’s soft power bilateral conflicts do not escalate. Taiwan also demonstrates the limits of Japan’s soft power. While Japan’s soft power has reduced the contentiousness of bilateral disputes, it is not a means for solving them.
