Chinese think tanks on Japan studies:a role in the Diaoyu Islands dispute?

Chinese foreign policy think tanks have played an increasingly important role in China’s foreign policy-making process since the open-door era. Following this trend, there has been more scholarly attention paid to think tanks in China, though the focus was more often given to individuals than to institutions. Two main reasons could be responsible to explain this phenomenon. One has to do with the definition of think tanks, showing the lack of research on the subject. The other is due to the reality in China today, meaning that the significance of think tanks is only partially related to its affiliation, while the role of prominent IR specialists could in times matter more than institutions. This paper intends to examine the evolving role of China’s think tanks on Japan Studies since the 1980s, with the focus on the Institute of Japanese Studies (IJS) under the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences. The paper will, firstly, define “think tanks” in China’s circumstances, and review the changing feature of Chinese think tanks on Japan studies, including IJS. Taking the Sino-Japanese dispute over the Diaoyu Islands as an example, the paper attempts to study the scholarly views expressed by IJS experts, and by a few key non-IJS specialists on Japan. By comparing the scholarly viewpoints with the government positions and public opinions, the paper hopes to find out whether the Chinese think tanks have got much influence on highly political and sensitive matters, like the Diaoyu Islands, and why