An Overview and History of Exchanges
In ancient times, active exchanges between Japan and the Middle East existed by way of the so-called "Silk Road." This is evident from the fact that among the articles used by Emperor Shomu (A.D. 701-756) and among other treasures kept at the Shosoin storehouse in Nara, one of Japan's ancient capitals, there are various handicraft items of Persian origin, including glassware and musical instruments bearing depictions of camels.
A long blank period in the history of exchanges between Japan and the Middle East then ensued. In modern times, however, a series of Japanese victories, such as the Russo-Japanese war (1904-1905), attracted attention in the Middle East, especially in the Turkish press. Japan by then had established a constitutional government, defeated Czarist Russia, and this, it is said, had a psychological impact on the subsequent revolutions for a constitutional government in Persia (Iran) and Turkey (1906 and 1908, respectively). The prominent Egyptian poet, Hafez Ibrahim, also praised Japan in a poem.
On their part, Japan also began to show a deeper interest in Islam and Arabic from the 1910s to the 1930s. Japan's first Islamite, Kotaro Yamaoka, made a pilgrimage to Mecca and was received in audience by Governor-General Hussein.
After that, the relations between Japan and the Middle East gradually grew, particularly in the economic and cultural fields. After World War II, however, those relations were almost completely suspended, though they were again resumed from 1951 onward after Japan regained its independence on the signing of the San Francisco Peace Treaty.
The outbreak of the Middle Eastern war in 1973 led to an epochal change in Japan's relations with that region, for the first oil crises that followed on the heels of that war brought home to the Japanese that a dispute in the Middle East can have a direct impact on their daily life. Later, as Japan's petroleum imports shifted from indirect purchases from major oil suppliers to direct purchases from the oil-producing countries, ties expanded between Japan and these countries, generating a widespread awareness among the Japanese that the oil-producing nations were actually of immense significance. Thus, the Middle East has been accorded greater priority in Japan's diplomatic endeavors in the cause for peace, since what happens in the Middle East has a direct bearing on world peace and stability.
As a result of these concerns, Japan's diplomatic relations with Middle Eastern countries have grown markedly closer, and as of January 1997, Japan maintains embassies in 20 Middle Eastern countries, while 19 countries in this region have embassies in Japan.
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