AT THE ROOTS OF THE ‘FINLAND BOOM’

Abstract

Finland enjoys a positive country image in Japan, where, reportedly, enthusiasm for things Finnish reached the state of a ‘boom’ during the 2000s–2010s. What is this positive visibility based on? To shed light on the foundations of Finland’s visibility in Japan, this article tracks Finland’s national imaging there from a historical perspective. Through an empirical study of Finnish diplomatic archives, the article looks beyond nation branding – the latest mode in the official promotion of states to foreign audiences – and opens a window into the past practices of Finland’s official promotion in the distant East Asian case. In the 1960s, the Press Bureau of Finland’s Foreign Ministry drafted an image policy to support Finland’s neutrality and to broaden the country’s interaction with the West. The policy was implemented through Finland’s embassies, and therefore Finland’s newly defined characteristics also became actively promoted in Tokyo. As a result of this intensification of Finnish public diplomacy in the Cold War, many of the modern aspects of Finland’s later nation branding in Japan were introduced. Of the redefined official autostereotype, cultural and commercial dimensions proved the easiest to promote, whereas its foreign political dimension was met with the most local contradiction.

Keywords:

• Finland
• image policy
• national imaging
• public diplomacy
• Finnish–Japanese relations

Acknowledgements

The author would like to thank her colleagues, as well as the anonymous reviewers, for their valuable comments and insight on the draft versions of this article.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author.

Notes

1. See, e.g., Lindblom, Lindblom, and Lehtonen, ‘A Study on Japanese’, 15–18, 21–4, 27–30, 32.

2. The ‘boom’ discourse has appeared as part of a fad for the Nordic countries in Japan, referred to as

Hokuō buumu, the Nordic boom. One part of it has been the ‘Finland boom’, the emergence of which is associated with the success of a Japanese motion picture Kamome Shokudo, 2006, depicting Helsinki, Finland’s high rankings in the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) since 2000, and the success of Scandinavian design in the Japanese market. The ‘boom’ discourse has spread to Finnish media in the 2000–2010s. In this article, the term ‘Finland boom’ is used after the form in which it appears in the Japanese language: Finrando buumu. Fuse, ‘Seeking for “Richness”’; Fuse, ‘Kamome Diner’, 255; Mitsui, ‘Moomintroll and Finland’, 5–6; Iwatake, ‘Representation of Finland’, 4; Iwatake, ‘Kamome Diner: Cultural Translation’; Mallenius, ‘Diffusion of Fashion’, 30–2; Leikos and Villberg, ‘Design and Finnishness’, 60; Rinne and Yppärilä, ‘Marketing Communication’, 86.

3. Takayama, ‘Politics of Externalization’, 51.

4. Fuse, ‘Kamome Diner’, 255.

5. Iwatake, ‘Kamome Diner: Cultural Translation’, 4.

6. Leikos and Villberg, ‘Design and Finnishness’, 60.

7. Varhama, ‘Finland’s Good Image’, first paragraph.

8. Ibid.

9. The term ‘nation brand’ is understood here as defined by Simon Anholt: It is the sum of people’s perceptions of a country across six areas of national competence – governance, exports, tourism, investment and immigration, culture and heritage, and people – that together determine the power and appeal of a nation’s brand image. Anholt, ‘Anholt Nation Brands Index’; Anholt, ‘The Nation Brand Hexagon’. On principles and practices of nation branding, see Dinnie, Nation Branding.

10. Team Finland, ‘Finland Promotion Board’, first and second paragraphs; Facebook and Twitter accounts of the embassy of Finland in Tokyo: https://www.facebook.com/FinnishEmbassyTokyo and https://twitter.com/FinEmbTokyo (accessed 7 April 2017).

11. On public diplomacy as winning of the hearts and minds of foreign audiences, see Pamment, ‘Articulating Influence’, 53; Osgood, ‘Hearts and Minds’, 86.

12. Research on the history of Finnish–Japanese relations that sheds light on mutual perceptions between the two countries includes, e.g., Fält, Eksotismista realismiin; Fält, ‘Suomen kuva Japanissa 1939–1944’; Sahi, Verkostot kaukaiseen itään; Momose, ‘Japan’s Relations with Finland’; Yoshitake, Nihonjin ha Hokuō kara.

13. Mitsui, ‘Moomintroll and Finland’; Iwatake ‘Representation of Finland’; Iwatake, ‘Kamome Diner: Cultural Translation’; Serita and Pöntiskoski, Marketing Finnish Design; Takayama, ‘Politics of Externalization’.

14. Andersson and Hilson, ‘Images of Sweden’, 219–21; Browning, ‘Small-State Identities’, 283–4; Valaskivi, ‘Brändikansakunnan kulttuuri’, 195–207; Clerc, ‘Suomi-brändin rakentaminen’, 26.

15. Lähteenkorva and Pekkarinen, Ikuisen poudan maa; Lähteenkorva and Pekkarinen, Idän etuvartio?; Kivioja, Kleemola, and Clerc, Sotapropagandasta brändäämiseen; Clerc, ‘Variables’; Clerc, ‘Gaining Recognition’; Clerc, ‘Reputation by Committee?’; Clerc, ‘Suomi-brändin rakentaminen’; Melgin, Propagandaa vai julkisuudiplomatiaa; Valaskivi, ‘Circulating a Fashion’; Valaskivi, ‘Brändikansakunnan kulttuuri’.

16. For an example of an inquiry into Finland’s image in a select target country (the United States), see Paasivirta, Suomen kuva Yhdysvalloissa.

17. For definition, see the next section in this article.

18. Browning, ‘Small-State Identities’, 284.

19. Ibid.

20. Lähteenkorva and Pekkarinen, Ikuisen poudan maa, 12–46, 143–9, 167–73; Lähteenkorva and Pekkarinen, Idän etuvartio?, 13–30, 42–54, 101–9, 115–21; Clerc, ‘Suomi-brändin rakentaminen’, 26–7; Clerc, ‘Gaining Recognition’, 147–8; Pilke, ‘Sympatian hankkijasta’. The name and position of the Press Bureau in the MFA’s organization has changed numerous times since its establishment. The term ‘Press Bureau’ will be used throughout this article.

21. Lähteenkorva and Pekkarinen, Idän etuvartio?, 101–9, 115–21; Clerc, ‘Variables’, 114–20; Clerc, ‘Ulkoasiainministeriö’. The Press Bureau lost responsibilities toward the end of the 1970s and concentrated mainly on managing the public relations of the ministry. Clerc, ‘Variables’, 116.

22. Valaskivi, ‘Brändikansakunnan kulttuuri’, 195–222; Ministry for Foreign Affairs, ‘Feel Finland’.

23. Clerc, ‘Ulkoasiainministeriö’; Clerc, ‘Reputation by Committee?’; Tuomi-Nikula, ‘Kantinesta EU-puheenjohtajuuteen’; Heino, ‘Julkisuusdiplomatian kehitysvaiheet’; Moilanen, ‘Tiekartta’. The end of the Cold War brought evolutions to Finnish imaging practices as central variables in the logics of how and why to showcase Finland abroad were in flux. Despite major changes in both domestic and international context of imaging Finland, however, the content of the officially promoted image retained many similarities to the early days of Finland’s international information. Beyond the sphere of the MFA, Finland and Finnish culture, industries, etc. have been promoted at various international exhibitions and world’s fairs, and the country’s image has been affected also, for example, in the international operations of Finnish companies, as well as through the international cooperation in the administrative fields of the Ministry for Trade and Industry and the Ministry for Education. When not reflected in the source materials of this article, these instances are left outside the current case.

24. Lindblom, Lindblom, and Lehtonen, ‘A Study on Japanese’. The survey, conducted online, was based on the answers of over 1,600 Japanese respondents.

25. Lähteenkorva and Pekkarinen, Ikuisen poudan maa; Lähteenkorva and Pekkarinen, Idän etuvartio?.

26. When included as clippings in the diplomatic reporting, original newspaper articles are used to back the commentary. If provided in English in the sources, direct quotations have been used. In case of Finnish- or Japanese-language original citations, translations into English are by the author of this article.

27. Fält, ‘Introduction’, 9.

28. See, e.g., Gilboa, ‘Searching for a Theory’; Kaneva, ‘Nation Branding’; Pamment, ‘Articulating Influence’; Cull, ‘Public Diplomacy: Taxonomies’.

29. Anderson, Imagined Communities, 3–7.

30. Clerc and Glover, ‘Representing the Small’, 3. See also, e.g., Valaskivi, ‘Brändikansakunnan kulttuuri’, 195–213.

31. Kazimierz Musiał, discussing images of Scandinavia in the Cold War, assumes that, ‘the

discursive reality in which the progressive Scandinavian community came into being was that of an imaginary community constructed by means of language and symbols’. In his account, a ‘progressive’ image of Scandinavia was constructed ‘in the discursive field emerging as a result of a constant interaction between foreign images of Scandinavia, i.e. its xenostereotypes, and the images conceived among the inhabitants of the region, i.e. the autostereotypes’. Musiał, Roots of the Scandinavian, 20–1 (italics in the original).

32. Leerssen, ‘Imagology: History and Method’, 23. About national culture and collective historical awareness as a construct rather than an objective condition, see Hobsbawm, ‘Introduction: Inventing Traditions’.

33. Andersson and Hilson, ‘Images of Sweden’, 224.

34. Leerssen, ‘Imagology: History and Method’, 22–3.

35. Clerc and Glover, ‘Representing the Small’, 5.

36. Clerc, ‘Gaining Recognition’, 146. See also Hakovirta, Duality of Target, 12–21.

37. The term public diplomacy was established by Edmund Gullion, a former US diplomat, in the mid-1960s. Pamment, ‘Articulating Influence’, 52; USC Center on Public Diplomacy, ‘What is Public Diplomacy’. The Finnish equivalent, julkisuusdiplomatia, was not widely popularized before the 2000s.

38. Clerc and Glover, ‘Representing the Small’, 4.

39. Gilboa, ‘Searching for a Theory’, 57.

40. Clerc, ‘Gaining Recognition’, 156–7.

41. Bátora, ‘Public Diplomacy’, abstract.

42. Clerc, ‘Ulkoasiainministeriö’, 193–4.

43. Gilboa, ‘Searching for a Theory’, 61. See also Bátora, ‘Public Diplomacy’, 53–80; Nye, Soft Power; Melissen, The New Public Diplomacy.

44. Gilboa, ‘Searching for a Theory’, 55–60; Lähteenkorva and Pekkarinen, Idän etuvartio?, 49–54, 75–89.

45. Clerc, ‘Variables’, 110, 112.

46. Clerc, ‘Variables’, 114.

47. Gilboa, ‘Searching for a Theory’, 55.

48. Clerc, ‘Gaining Recognition’, 155 (my italics).

49. The treaty committed Finland to defending itself against an attack by ‘Germany or its allies’ through Finland’s territory (but not elsewhere) at the Soviet Union and, if need be, ‘in cooperation with the Soviet Union’. Act 17/1948 on the FCMA treaty, Finlex Data Bank: http://finlex.fi/fi/sopimukset/sopsteksti/1948/19480017 (accessed 18 September 2015); Clerc, ‘Gaining Recognition’, 150.

50. Clerc, ‘Gaining Recognition’, 150, 162; Clerc, ‘Ulkoasiainministeriö’, 200; Lähteenkorva and Pekkarinen, Idän etuvartio?, 101–15, 345–51; Soikkanen, Presidentin ministeriö, 205–72, 355–64; Paavonen, ‘Eristäytyneestä rajamaasta’, 391–3.

51. Clerc, ‘Variables’, 114–16; Clerc, ‘Gaining Recognition’, 158–69; Lähteenkorva and Pekkarinen, Idänetuvartio?, 101–15.

52. Finland participated in the World Exhibition in Osaka in 1970 as part of a co-Nordic Scandinavian Pavilion. See Glover, ‘Unity Exposed’, 223–7, 231–7.

53. Ragnar Smedslund to the Ministry for Foreign Affairs, Kirjelmä no. 92/34, Tokyo, 17 February 1953. Ulkoasiainministeriön arkisto [Archives of the Ministry for Foreign Affairs of Finland; hereafter abbreviated as UMA], 5 G 15 t.

54. In Japan, both envoy Ragnar Smedslund and later the first ambassador Viljo Ahokas approved of the Finnish Features by reporting that, as a ‘remarkable addition to the publicity activities can be mentioned the regular distribution to the local newspapers and news agencies of the article series “Finnish Features”’ (Smedslund to the Ministry for Foreign Affairs, Kirjelmä 207/62, 26 February 1962) and that it had ‘proven very useful and beneficial’ (Ahokas to the Ministry for Foreign Affairs, Kirjelmä no. 177/68, 28 March 1963). UMA 5 G: Tokio Vuosikertomukset [Tokyo Annual reports].

55. Finnish Features volumes 1963–1969; Look at Finland volumes 1964–1969. In the collections of the National Library of Finland and the University of Turku Central Library.

56. Lähteenkorva and Pekkarinen, Idän etuvartio?, 64–7, 101–39, 154–6, 162, 184; Clerc, ‘Gaining Recognition, 163–5.

57. Ragnar Smedslund to the Ministry for Foreign Affairs, Kirjelmä no. 89/32, Tokyo, 25 February 1958; Ibid., Kirjelmä no. 189/53, 25 February 1960; Viljo Ahokas to the Ministry for Foreign Affairs, Kirjelmä no. 242/59, Tokyo, 13 March 1964; Ibid., Kirjelmä no. 111/35, 28 March 1967; Åke Wihtol to the Ministry for Foreign Affairs, Kirjelmä no. 260/95, Tokyo, 21 April 1970. UMA 5 G.

58. Lähteenkorva and Pekkarinen, Idän etuvartio?, 116.

59. Ibid., 116–21; Clerc, ‘Gaining Recognition’, 165–9.

60. Fält, ‘Japanin ja Suomen suhteet’, 35–6.

61. Mitsui, ‘Moomintroll and Finland’, 15.

62. P. O. Ekholm, secretary and later chair of the Finnish-Japanese Society, in Ekholm, ‘Suomalais-japanilaisen yhdistyksen’, 7.

63. Fält, ‘Japanin ja Suomen suhteet’, 35–45.

64. Among the first members of the Society was, for example, the Finnish architect Alvar Aalto. Ekholm, ‘Suomalais-japanilaisen yhdistyksen’, 9.

65. Fält, ‘Suomen kuva Japanissa’, 195–7.

66. Ragnar Smedslund to the Ministry for Foreign Affairs, Kirjelmä no. 89/32, Tokyo, 25 February 1958. UMA 5 G; Hentilä, ‘Itsenäistymisestä jatkosodan päättymiseen’, 209–11; Fält, ‘Suomen kuva Japanissa’, 195; Vuojolainen, ‘History’, 12th and 13th paragraphs; ‘Suomen ja Japanin väliset suhteet’. Liite, Valtioneuvoston ulkoasiainvaliokunnan kokous 28.6.56, 7/56, VN:n ulkoasiainvaliokunnan pöytäkirjat, UMA Cb.

67. Ekholm, ‘Suomalais-japanilaisen yhdistyksen’, 9.

68. Vuojolainen, ‘History’, 15th–18th paragraphs.

69. Embassy of Finland in Tokyo, ‘Over the Years’; Finland’s legation in Tokyo was officially designated an embassy on 26 September 1962, when Ambassador Viljo Ahokas submitted his credentials to the emperor of Japan. Vuojolainen, ‘History’, 14th paragraph; Viljo Ahokas to the Ministry for Foreign Affairs, Kirjelmä no. 177/68, Tokyo, 28 March 1963. UMA 5 G.

70. T. Takeuchi, Deputy secretary of State, Too Nippon, 20 December 1959. Martti Lintulahti to the Ministry for Foreign Affairs of Finland, Kirjelmä no. 76/18, ‘Suomi Japanin lehdistössä’, Tokyo, 16 January 1959. UMA 94 B: Japani Lehdistökatsaukset [Japan Press reports]. In the Japanese press, Finland was labelled a ‘Scandinavian’ country, much to the Finns’ satisfaction, although the term was geographically imprecise.

71. For reporting practices, see Suomi, ‘Raportointi – diplomaatin ongelmallinen velvollisuus’, 210–14.

72. Annual work statistics in Tokio Vuosikertomukset 1952–1969. UMA 5 G.

73. Ragnar Smedslund to the Ministry for Foreign Affairs, Kirjelmä no. 105/59, Tokyo, 1 March 1961. UMA 5 G.

74. Viljo Ahokas to the Ministry for Foreign Affairs, Kirjelmä no. 177/68, Tokyo, 28 March 1963. UMA 5G.

75. E.g. in Shipping & Trade News, 22 December 1962. Martti Lintulahti to the Ministry for Foreign Affairs, Kirjelmä no. 47/24, Tokyo, 18 January 1963. UMA 94 B.

76. E.g. in Kyodo News Service rural papers, 24 December 1962. Ibid.

77. Martti Lintulahti to the Ministry for Foreign Affairs, Kirjelmä no. 341/112, Tokyo, 10 May 1960. UMA 94 B.

78. Åke Wihtol to the Ministry for Foreign Affairs, Kirjelmä no. 260/95, Tokyo, 21 April 1970. UMA 5 G.

79. E.g. in only one of the largest Japanese dailies, Asahi Shimbun, the word ‘Finland’ appeared 242 times during 1960–1969. Asahi Shimbun Kikuzo Visual II Database, full text search: https://database.asahi.com/help/eng/help.html (accessed 13 May 2015).

80. Ragnar Smedslund to the Ministry for Foreign Affairs, Kirjelmä no. 207/62, Tokyo, 26 February 1962. UMA 5 G.

81. Niskanen, ‘Muumibrändi Japanissa’, 36–44. See also Mitsui, ‘Moomintroll and Finland’, 8–9.

82. Åke Wihtol to the Ministry for Foreign Affairs, Kirjelmä no. 260/95, Tokyo, 21 April 1970. UMA 5 G.

83. For television, the Moomins have been animated twice, first in 1969–1970 (Moomin, produced by Zuio Enterprise, animated by Tokyo Movie Shinsha and Mushi Production, aired by a commercial television station Fuji TV; sequel Shin-Moomin produced in 1972) and again in 1990–1991 (Tanoshii Moomin ikka). Niskanen, ‘Muumibrändi Japanissa’, 36–8.

84. Mitsui, ‘Moomintroll and Finland’, 5–9.

85. Ibid., 9.

86. Ibid.

87. Marimekko made its first foreign license agreements in the United States and Japan in 1972. The first Marimekko shops were opened in Japan in 2006. Marimekko, ‘Marimekko Sutoorii’, 4th section, ‘1970 nendai’, and 7th section, ‘2000 nendai’; Marimekko, ‘Historia’, 6th paragraph.

88. Andersson and Hilson, ‘Images of Sweden’, 219–28.

89. Viljo Ahokas to the Ministry for Foreign Affairs, Kirjelmä no. 156/46, Tokyo, 26 March 1966. UMA 5G.

90. Heikki Kalha to the Ministry for Foreign Affairs, Kirjelmä no. 275/118, Tokyo, 21 June 1968. UMA 5G.

91. Viljo Ahokas to the Ministry for Foreign Affairs, Kirjelmä no. 111/35, Tokyo, 28 March 1967. UMA 5G.

92. Åke Wihtol to the Ministry for Foreign Affairs, Kirjelmä no. 260/95, Tokyo, 21 April 1970. UMA 5 G.

93. Nichi Michi of Miyazaki, 1961. Martti Lintulahti to the Ministry for Foreign Affairs, Kirjelmä no.441/188, Tokyo, 26 July 1961. UMA 94 B.

94. J. E. D. Hall in The Japan Times, 6 October 1962. Martti Lintulahti to the Ministry for Foreign Affairs, Kirjelmä no. 47/24, Tokyo, 18 January 1963. UMA 94 B.

95. Programme for International Student Assessment. See Takayama, ‘Politics of Externalization’.

96. The Mainichi Daily News, 1 May 1960. Martti Lintulahti to the Ministry for Foreign Affairs, Kirjelmä no. 341/112, Tokyo, 10 May 1960. UMA 94 B.

97. Yasuo Miyake, Professor of pedagogics, in the journal of Japan’s Teachers Union Kyoiku Gijutsu (Educational Technique), 1961. Martti Lintulahti to the Ministry for Foreign Affairs, Kirjelmä no.157/84, Tokyo, 30 March 1961. UMA 94 B.

98. Lähteenkorva and Pekkarinen, Idän etuvartio?, 115–21.

99. Asahi Shimbun, 3 April 1964. Attachment to the press report by Erkki Hedmanson to the Ministry forForeign Affairs, Kirjelmä no. 426/99, Tokyo, 8 June 1964. UMA 94 B.

100. Asahi Shimbun, evening edition, Sapporo, 28 April 1964. Attachment, Erkki Hedmanson to the Ministry for Foreign Affairs, Kirjelmä no. 433/102, Tokyo, 11 June 1964. UMA 94 B.

101. Viljo Ahokas to the Ministry for Foreign Affairs, Kirjelmä no. 242/59, Tokyo, 13 March 1964. UMA 5G.

102. Ibid., Kirjelmä no. 156/46, Tokyo, 26 March 1966. UMA 5 G.

103. Åke Wihtol to the Ministry for Foreign Affairs, Kirjelmä no. 174/82, Tokyo, 17 March 1969. UMA 5G.

104. On Finland’s Cold War foreign policy as small-state realism, see, e.g., Rentola, ‘Suomi kylmässäsodassa’, 285–92.

105. Presented in Japan for the first time in cinemas in 1961.

106. Mainichi Shimbun, 1 June 1961. Martti Lintulahti to the Ministry for Foreign Affairs, Kirjelmä no.441/188, Tokyo, 26 July 1961. UMA 94 B.

107. Yomiuri, 19 September 1967. In a telegram, ‘Lehdistökatsaus’, to the President of the Republic, Prime Minister, Minister for Foreign Affairs, Secretary of State, Political department, Press Bureau of the Ministry for Foreign Affairs. Tokyo, 19 September 1967. UMA 94 B.

108. Martti Lintulahti to the Ministry for Foreign Affairs, Kirjelmä no. 441/188, Tokyo, 26 July 1961. UMA 94 B.

109. Yoichi Kitazume, a London-based reporter in Sankei Shimbun, 6 June 1966. Erkki Hedmanson to the Ministry for Foreign Affairs, Kirjelmä no. 295/92, Tokyo, 9 June 1966. UMA 94 B.

110. See Krekola, Maailma kylässä 1962.

111. Fukushima Minpo, 12 August 1962. Martti Lintulahti to the Ministry for Foreign Affairs, Kirjelmä no.787/271, Tokyo, 16 September 1962. UMA 94 B.

112. Tokyo Shimbun, 3 September 1962; Ibid.

113. Yomiuri Shimbun, 23 August 1962. Martti Lintulahti, to the Ministry for Foreign Affairs, Kirjelmä no.735/248, Tokyo, 31 August 1962. UMA 94 B.

114. Martti Lintulahti to the Ministry for Foreign Affairs, Kirjelmä no. 157/84, Tokyo, 30 March 1961.UMA 94 B.

115. Nippon Kogyo Sha, 18 November 1962. Martti Lintulahti to the Ministry for Foreign Affairs, Kirjelmä no. 47/24, Tokyo, 18 January 1963. UMA 94 B.

116. See Fält, ‘Suomen kuva Japanissa’; Ipatti, Suomen silmänä ja korvana; Martti Lintulahti to the Ministry for Foreign Affairs, Kirjelmä no. 20/13, Tokyo, 9 January 1960. UMA 94 B.

117. Asahi Shimbun, 21 July 1960; Chujo Watanabe of Kyodo News in Shimbun Kenkyu, June 1961. Martti Lintulahti to the Ministry for Foreign Affairs, Kirjelmä no. 562/169, Tokyo, 10 August 1960. UMA 94 B.

118. Martti Lintulahti to the Ministry for Foreign Affairs, Kirjelmä no. 632/279, Tokyo, 10 November 1961. UMA 94 B.

119. The Japan Times, editorial, 1 November 1961; Ibid.

120. Nevakivi, ‘Jatkosodasta nykypäivään’, 275–6. For discussion, see, e.g., Rautkallio, Novosibirskin lavastus; Rentola, ‘Suomi kylmässä sodassa’, 303–6.

121. Asahi Shimbun, 7 November 1961; Asahi Evening News, 9 November 1961. Martti Lintulahti to the Ministry for Foreign Affairs, Kirjelmä no. 632/279, Tokyo, 10 November 1961. UMA 94 B.

122. In a telegram, ‘Lehdistökatsaus; itsenäisyyspäivä 1962’, to the President of the Republic, Prime Minister, Minister for Foreign Affairs, Secretary of State, Political department, Press Bureau of the Ministry for Foreign Affairs. Tokyo, 7 December 1961. UMA 94 B.

123. H. D. Black, ‘Take Care’, front page, Yomiuri, 21 January 1962. Martti Lintulahti to the Ministry for Foreign Affairs, Kirjelmä no. 109/29, Tokyo, 22 January 1962. UMA 94 B.

124. Norman Lindhurst, Worldwide Press Service, The Mainichi Daily News, 13 February 1962. Martti Lintulahti to the Ministry for Foreign Affairs, Kirjelmä no. 177/59, Tokyo, 17 February 1962. UMA 94B.

125. Alexander Bregman of Foreign News Service, The Mainichi Daily News, 22 August 1963, dated in Helsinki. Attached to the report by Martti Lintulahti to the Ministry for Foreign Affairs, Kirjelmä no. 479/189, Tokyo, 27 August 1963. UMA 94 B.

126. H. D. Black, ‘Take Care’, front page, Yomiuri, 21 January 1962. Martti Lintulahti to the Ministry for Foreign Affairs, Kirjelmä no. 109/29, Tokyo, 22 January 1962. UMA 94 B.

127. Alexander Bregman of Foreign News Service, The Mainichi Daily News, 22 August 1963, dated in Helsinki. Attached to the report by Martti Lintulahti to the Ministry for Foreign Affairs, Kirjelmä no.479/189, Tokyo, 27 August 1963. UMA 94 B.

128. See Soikkanen, Presidentin ministeriö, 355–64.

129. Watanabe later became a central figure in Finnish–Japanese relations and had a stipend fund established in his name.

130. Journal of the federation of Japan’s journalists, Shimbun Kenkyu, June 1961. Ragnar Smedslund to the Ministry for Foreign Affairs, Kirjelmä no. 392/161, Tokyo, 27 June 1961. UMA 94 B.

131. Ragnar Smedslund to the Ministry for Foreign Affairs, Kirjelmä no. 392/161 Attachment, Tokyo, 27 June 1961, ‘Extract from an Article by Chujo Watanabe in Shimbun Kenkyu, June 1961’. UMA 94 B.

132. Hakovirta, Suomettuminen. See also Länteenkorva and Pekkarinen, Idän etuvartio?; Soikkanen, Presidentin ministeriö.

133. Aunesluoma, Vapaakaupan tiellä, 189–243; Soikkanen, Presidentin ministeriö, 214–59; Paavonen, ‘Eristäytyneestä rajamaasta’, 386–96; Remes, Lähimarkkinoita ja kaukomaita’, 66–83.

134. Asahi Shimbun, 21 July 1960. Martti Lintulahti to the Ministry for Foreign Affairs, Kirjelmä no.562/169, Tokyo, 10 August 1960. UMA 94 B.

135. The Japan Times, 25 March 1961. In a telegram, ‘EFTA-asia Japanin lehdissä’, to the President of the Republic, Prime Minister, Minister for Foreign Affairs, Minister Karjalainen, Secretary of State, Political department, etc. of the Ministry for Foreign Affairs. Tokyo, 26 March 1961; Ragnar Smedslund to the Ministry for Foreign Affairs, Kirjelmä no. 149/80, Tokyo, 27 March 1961. UMA 94B.

136. The Japan Times, 15 February 1963, dated in Helsinki. Martti Lintulahti to the Ministry for Foreign Affairs, Kirjelmä no. 132/52, Tokyo, 1 March 1963. UMA 94 B.

137. Later developments include the first official and state visits between Finland and Japan, the establishment of the agreements on Cultural Exchange and Air Traffic, the opening of direct flights between Helsinki and Tokyo, and increases in exports promotion and bilateral events. Embassy of Finland in Tokyo homepage, Vuojolainen, ‘History’, 15th–18th paragraphs.

138. The ‘blank canvas’ phenomenon has been used to explain sudden surges of popularity of a given country, as low international awareness about the country has meant that its name can be ‘picked up’ and ‘filled with meaning’. Clerc and Glover, ‘Representing the Small’, 11.

139. Karjalainen, Speech, 8.

140. Although ‘pioneering’ is more commonly associated with Finland’s foreign representation in its European context at the time of the establishment of the MFA during the first years of Finland’s independence, this study indicates that such elementary conditions lingered on in more distant embassies well into the Cold War. For the early independence, see Lähteenkorva and Pekkarinen, Ikuisen poudan maa, 14–15.

141. On the ‘survival strategy of a small state’, see Railo, ‘Pienen valtion kansallinen selviytymisstrategia’, 407–30; Rentola, ‘Suomi kylmässä sodassa’, 285–309.

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by the University of Turku Graduate School (UTUGS) Doctoral Programme of Social and Behavioural Sciences, the Academy of Finland Mobility Grant [grant number 279026], the Turku University Foundation [grant numbers 10543, 4-1189, 10686], and the Network for Research on Multiculturalism and Societal Interaction (MCnet).

Notes on contributors

Laura Ipatti

Laura Ipatti is a Doctoral Candidate at the University of Turku, Unit of Contemporary History. Her research interests include history of Finnish public diplomacy, Finland’s Cold War image policy, and Finnish experiences on nation branding and electronic diplomacy. Currently, Ipatti is conducting her doctoral dissertation research on the history of Finland’s public diplomacy in the case of Japan. Address: Department of Philosophy, Contemporary History and Political Science, University of Turku, FI-20014 Turku, Finland. [email: [email protected]]