【Text by Yao Chun, Ph.D. student in Journalism at Fudan University】

Recently, media reports revealed that the Japanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs has spent hundreds of billions of yen on "image projects," which have drawn attention from both domestic and international public opinion. On the occasion of the 80th anniversary of the victory of the War of Resistance against Japanese Aggression and the World Anti-Fascist War, Japan not only fails to reflect on its history but also attempts to reshape it through such means, which must raise our vigilance.

In fact, for a long time, the Japanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs has been making every effort to carry out a "memory reformation" project in an attempt to shake off the identity of a defeated country and aggressor, and become a "normal country." Therefore, domestically, they have long been arbitrarily altering the history of Japan's aggression during World War II, downplaying the image of Japan's aggression, and deliberately creating a victim image. Externally, they are shaping their image in the countries they once invaded and cultivating pro-Japanese groups in target countries. The recent exposure of the Japanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs' image funding is a specific practice of its external "memory reformation" project.

On Weibo, a blogger (ID: Zhaizi De Cha) has conducted an investigation on this issue. According to the data obtained from the investigation, we can get two important pieces of information: first, the amount of money is far more than hundreds of billions of yen, and second, Japan's arrangements are very detailed.

There is a statistical scope issue here. The so-called "overseas strategic information dissemination" work involves a wide range of content. If we look at the Japanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs' annual "strategic overseas communication" budget statistics, excluding the abnormal situation in 2021 due to the pandemic, the total amount of money Japan has used for overseas strategic communication and the cultivation of pro-Japanese groups can reach approximately 644 billion yen! Specifically:

·2015 (Heisei 27) was 70 billion yen

·2016 (Heisei 28) was 54.1 billion yen

·2017 (Heisei 29) was 55.9 billion yen

·2018 (Heisei 30) was 81 billion yen

·2019 (Heisei 31) was 71.2 billion yen

·2020 (Reiwa 2) was 74.2 billion yen

·2021 (Reiwa 3) was 253.1 billion yen

·2022 (Reiwa 4) was 63.8 billion yen

·2023 (Reiwa 5) was 47.9 billion yen

·2024 (Reiwa 6) was 59.7 billion yen

·2025 (Reiwa 7) was 66.2 billion yen

How does Japan spend such a huge amount of money? It can be said that in this regard, Japan once again demonstrates its unique national characteristics, namely "focusing on the refinement of tactical details, without any strategic consideration."

We will now examine some representative years:

First, the multiple preparations made by Japan in 2015.

Starting in 2015 (the 70th anniversary of the victory in the War of Resistance against Japanese Aggression), when China, after its revival, reasserted the nature of the war, Japan launched both overtly and covertly a memory reformation at home and abroad. Their strategy was: strategic overseas communication; contributing to global issues based on positive pacifism; promoting and supporting the "Abenomics" economic diplomacy; actively and strategically utilizing Official Development Assistance (ODA); and promoting the leap in the execution system of foreign policy.

What is called "strategic overseas communication" refers to the strategic promotion related to the 70th anniversary of the end of World War II (in Japanese: 戦後70周年). The reason for taking such an active approach to "communication" is because Japan believes that China and South Korea have achieved significant success in the worldwide "anti-Japanese" activities, especially in the United States. For example:

In 2007, the U.S. House of Representatives passed a resolution requiring Japan to apologize for the comfort women issue; in 2010, there was a movement across the United States to erect monuments and statues of comfort women, and to include the content of the old Japanese army forcibly recruiting comfort women in history books; in 2014, when Abe came to power, he was criticized by The New York Times. The newspaper pointed out that the Abe government's act of falsifying the history of Japan's aggression and comfort women was a serious mistake.

The Abe government at that time viewed these situations as a serious crisis and adopted an active overseas communication strategy, emphasizing "strong diplomacy," and this strategy was the basic core of the "strategic overseas communication" during Abe's second term.

In 2017, the comfort women memorial statue in San Francisco's St. Mary's Square and the statue of Kim Hak-sun.

Regarding their actions, different from previous existing projects, the 2015 budget created two new directions:

The first new direction was to establish "Japan Houses" in relevant countries to showcase Japan's image. The main work involved "establishing overseas public diplomacy centers and spreading Japan's true identity and diverse charm." For this purpose, 3.59 billion yen was allocated for the establishment of "Japan Houses" in the fiscal year 2015, currently located in London, Los Angeles, and Sao Paulo. The first two cities are key hubs for Japan's communication with European and American countries, while Sao Paulo is an important landing point for Japanese immigrants. In addition, "Japan Houses" are also used to support the "Cool Japan Strategy," aiming to strengthen overseas communication through "all Japan" actions.

The second new direction was to cultivate pro-Japanese, knowledgeable, and Japan-conscious individuals. The report stated that the Japanese government provided a total of 7.7 billion yen in funds to cultivate pro-Japanese, knowledgeable individuals. Of this, 1.04 billion yen was used to promote Japanese language education, 1.25 billion yen was used to strengthen support for overseas Japanese research institutions and organizations. At the same time, an additional 2.88 billion yen was allocated to expand exchanges and cultivate pro-Japanese talents.

Additionally, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs maintained 9.5 billion yen from 2014 for Japan's diplomatic think tanks and the "International Women and Women's Symposium," attempting to promote Japan's "correct image" regarding territorial integrity, historical perception, and positive peace contributions to the international community. Through the promotion of Japanese traditional culture and the "Cool Japan" diversity, it aimed to enhance international understanding of Japan.

It is no coincidence that some big V's involved in the "Ministry of Foreign Affairs funded big V scandal" in recent years were part of this budget. This budget also included Japanese government intelligence work in other countries. For example, 6.7 billion yen was used to monitor the movements of embassies in related countries and the major country's reporting work. There was also 4.1 billion yen for strengthening the promotional activities of Japan's overseas embassies. This included corresponding media training activities.

All these details were publicly displayed as "work achievements" in the 2016 Foreign Affairs Blue Book by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Second, the specific implementation by Japan after 2015.

In 2016, due to Japan hosting the G7 Ise-Shima Summit, its "ambitions" were clearly stated in the budget for that year as achieving "diplomacy that looks at the world map." According to the official report of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, "strategic overseas communication" remained a key project, and it required maintaining a total budget of no less than 50 billion yen previously. The purpose was to "further utilize the overseas strategic communication budget starting this year, strengthen 'All Japan' communication, firmly establish and spread Japan's 'true image' and 'diverse charm,' and contribute to expanding the group of pro-Japanese people and intellectuals." The main work was largely similar to 2015.

The total budget for "strategic overseas communication" in 2016 was 54.1 billion yen, of which 34.9 billion yen was allocated in the form of ODA. 4.2 billion yen was allocated for Japan Houses, and the budget for cultivating pro-Japanese people increased to 16 billion yen. Among them, 20 million yen was used to strengthen international communication, 470 million yen was used to strengthen communication with overseas media, and 750 million yen was used to study and analyze the influence of Japan and other countries in major countries, and then conduct effective communication based on this foundation.

In 2017, the total budget for "strategic overseas communication" was 55.9 billion yen, of which 30.1 billion yen was allocated in the form of ODA. 8.3 billion yen was used to strengthen international public opinion analysis and international communication capabilities related to Japan, communication with foreign media, and strengthening domestic think tanks. In that year, an additional 500 million yen was allocated to support academic research on territorial and historical issues and international communication activities by domestic think tanks. According to the specialized account report of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the budget for cultivating pro-Japanese people that year was approximately 2.76 billion yen.

In 2018, "strategic overseas communication" saw a significant increase. According to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs report, this year's budget increased by 29.7 billion yen compared to the previous year, reaching 81 billion yen, of which 52.8 billion yen was in the form of ODA. Perhaps in commemoration of the 150th anniversary of Emperor Meiji's ascension, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs included research activities related to Emperor Meiji in Japan's "correct image" work.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs' goals also became more "expansive," such as adjusting the wording to "spread Japan's correct image and help the international community understand Japan's policies and initiatives"; increasing the number of pro-Japanese, knowledgeable people in the long run, improving Japan's presence, understanding, and favorability in the international community. More ambitiously, the project proposed a new goal: to cultivate young government officials who are pro-Japanese and capable through non-reimbursable aid and technical cooperation.

This budget also had a version annotated by the Research Room of the House of Councillors Committee on Foreign Affairs and Defense. The total budget mentioned in this version was about 10 billion yen less than the Ministry of Foreign Affairs version, but reached a total of 70.8 billion yen. Of this, 940 million yen was used to strengthen cooperation with overseas think tanks, and 510 million yen was used to support domestic think tanks in conducting academic research on territorial and historical issues and external communication activities. According to relevant data, the budget for cultivating pro-Japanese people that year was approximately 2.6 billion yen.

In 2019, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs took advantage of the Osaka G20 Summit to propose the goal of "strengthening diplomatic capabilities." The total budget for "strategic overseas communication" was 71.2 billion yen, with 47.7 billion yen in the form of ODA. The overall work content did not undergo major changes. Of this, 3.62 billion yen was allocated for the construction of "Japan Houses." 5.7 billion yen was used to support cooperation between domestic and foreign think tanks, including support for research on territorial sovereignty and historical issues, as well as strengthening the promotion of Japan's policies and initiatives to foreign media. The budget for cultivating pro-Japanese people was approximately 2.35 billion yen.

In 2021, due to the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic, although the House of Councillors' budget report mentioned "strategic overseas communication," it was not highlighted as a key topic but placed under the title "strengthening cooperation with the international community and advancing 'inclusive' diplomacy," with a total budget of 253.1 billion yen, of which 215.8 billion yen was in the form of ODA. In that year, the Japanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs focused on three pillars: promoting Japan's policies, initiatives, and positions; promoting Japan's diverse charm; and cultivating pro-Japanese people and intellectuals for strategic communication.

In its 2021 white paper, there was another detail worth noting. The Japanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs has started to consciously desensitize and justify the imperialist flag of the old Japanese Empire, the Rising Sun Flag. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs defended itself by stating, "We have always provided accurate information about the Rising Sun Flag through various ways to gain international understanding, such as multilingual materials on the national flag on the Ministry of Foreign Affairs website." In its overseas video website promotions, it even referred to the "Rising Sun Flag" as part of Japanese traditional culture, but the comment section was closed.

In 2023, due to the impact of the Russia-Ukraine conflict, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs included "strategic overseas communication" in the "response to new combat methods such as information warfare" section, adding "information warfare preparation" as a main working content. An additional 210 million yen was allocated for strengthening social media monitoring, information analysis, and dissemination.

Several new action plans were also added to "strategic overseas communication." For example, 150 million yen was specifically allocated for external publicity work on Japan's nuclear contaminated water discharge, to enhance understanding of Japan's nuclear contaminated water and promote the export of Japan's agricultural, forestry, and aquatic products. In cultivating pro-Japanese people, it exceeded previous years, providing 12.8 billion yen for the International Exchange Foundation. Additionally, 200 million yen was allocated to invite ministers and strategic implementation-level officials.

In 2024, the theme of the relevant work was merged into "Countering False Information / Strengthening Strategic Overseas Communication and Information Security." The content mainly divided into four aspects: strengthening measures to combat false information. Further utilizing the expertise of the private sector to cultivate specialized talent. Using artificial intelligence to improve information collection and analysis capabilities; strengthening strategic overseas communication.

Mainly covering territorial, sovereignty, historical issues, and nuclear wastewater discharge; building and strengthening information security infrastructure, establishing a zero-trust network architecture (ZTA); promoting understanding of Japan. Including cultural exchanges, assistance for Japanese language learning (including creating an environment that accepts foreign talents), Japan Houses, promoting Japanese studies, UNESCO, Japanese descendants, and Japanese communities, receiving and exchanging students, etc.

The total budget for this year was 59.7 billion yen, of which 920 million yen was used to strengthen the Ministry of Foreign Affairs' monitoring, analysis, and dissemination of information in the cognitive domain. 11.7 billion yen was applied for cultivating pro-Japanese people, although the Ministry of Foreign Affairs' report no longer explicitly referred to it as a budget for cultivating pro-Japanese individuals. However, comparing the 2023 budget, it corresponds to the category of pro-Japanese person training.

In 2025, the total project name was changed to "Strengthening Efforts in the Era of Information Warfare." After updating the report, the total budget was 66.2 billion yen, of which the budget for cultivating pro-Japanese people was further increased to 13.6 billion yen. The Japan Cooperation Association also provided additional spending to accelerate the cultivation of pro-Japanese people.

On August 7, 2024, Japan initiated the eighth round of seawater discharge of nuclear-contaminated water from the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant.

In summary, since 2015, the Japanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs has spent more than 56 billion yen to whitewash Japan's image. Excluding the most severe year of the pandemic in 2021, the annual budget investment has been no less than 50 billion yen. After the pandemic, the proportion of the budget for cultivating pro-Japanese people has surged. The total budget over 10 years is approximately 644 billion yen, equivalent to about 4.384 billion USD. If converted into RMB, it is about 31.3 billion. It should be noted that according to the Japanese Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry's nuclear wastewater treatment report in 2020, the cost of direct seawater discharge was estimated at 3.4 billion yen, while the steam emission option was 34.9 billion yen, which is far less than the annual cost of whitewashing. Even the cost of discharging nuclear wastewater is not as much as the tenth part of the funds spent on cultivating pro-Japanese people in the past three years.

In other words: Over 10 years, the funds Japan has used to whitewash its evil history are 189 times the cost of its nuclear wastewater discharge. (Thanks to the comprehensive research by Weibo ID: Zhaizi De Cha.)

With the "relentless" efforts of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, it is not difficult to understand why today's Japanese youth often wonder why they are being "resented" by the Chinese. They even question, "That was the evil done by the Japanese in history, why do we have to bear the consequences?" This is the result of the long-term shaping by the Japanese authorities.

When the Japanese authorities casually write about the crimes of Japan in World War II with seemingly "objective" brushstrokes, the lives and cries of those who were murdered will certainly not appear in the textbooks of the Japanese. When the Japanese authorities deliberately compress the history of Japan in World War II, what remains in the Japanese textbooks is only some dry symbols, while the complete, bloody, and cruel history behind the symbols is completely erased.

Historical narratives are linear narratives. They tell us the time, place, people, development, results, and significance of history through words. We view history like a timeline, gradually forming a very systematic historical world and framework. We Chinese are the typical group of "historical narratives."

However, post-historical narratives are fragmented narratives. They use various technological images to present fragments of history. For example, 9/11, the Russia-Ukraine conflict, these historical information are entered into our minds through social media in a localized, fragmented form. Compared to the linear historical model, this model transmits information through "captured" and "read" forms. They have simultaneity, immediacy, and superficiality, but lack the understanding framework centered on history and logic. People enter a "post-historical" world dominated by sensory capture and image imagination.

Japanese people say, "We have been bombed with atomic bombs, we are victims," because the Japanese today see the results of the atomic bomb aftermath recreated by the Japanese authorities using technological images (imagine how the Japanese might also use technological images to recreate their atrocities on Chinese territory?). So, young Japanese see not a complete, logical history, but a completely fragmented, pieced-together history. They only feel about the fragments of history, and even the remaining fragments are left as fragments by the阴阳笔法 (yinyang brush strokes).

But for us Chinese, how can we forget or dare to forget that humiliating history? To forget or allow Japan's distortion is not only a disgrace to our ancestors, but from an individual perspective, it is also a real betrayal, a betrayal of our memory and our relationship with ourselves and our nation. Our ancestors are not unrelated to us; without them, where would we come from?

Memory is so powerful that it can unite 1.4 billion Chinese people on 9.06 million square kilometers of land; but it can also be very fragile, as the billions of people on the four islands of Japan can erase that memory. They prefer to concoct plots and schemes rather than face history. And countless histories have taught us that if we don't take history seriously, we will be taught a lesson by history again.

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Original: https://www.toutiao.com/article/7544180882228249131/

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