Russian Strategic Communications toward Japan: A More Benign Model of Influence?

Abstract:Russia has been accused of weaponizing information to exert influence over the political systems and publics of countries in Europe and North America. However, is Moscow engaged in comparable activities in Japan? Given Japan's status as the United States' main ally in East Asia and the history of Soviet influence operations in the country, Japan is a logic target. Yet, to date, no detailed study has been conducted into Russia's use of information tools toward Japan. To fill this gap, in this article I examine Russia's contemporary strategic communications toward Japan in five areas: public diplomacy, Japanese mainstream media, Japanese social media, Russian state media in the Japanese language, and Russia's use of Japanese agents of influence. I also assess the extent to which these activities pose a threat to Japanese security by comparing Russia's activities via both a benign and malign model of strategic communications. This also facilitates comparisons with Russia's actions in other countries. Having identified contrasts in the approach taken by Russia toward Japan and Western states, the article concludes by discussing explanations for these differences.