Between joy and fear: the duality of emotions in Japan’s addresses to the United Nations General Assembly

This article examines the link between emotions and Japanese diplomacy at the United Nations (UN), where Japan is a major actor. While the literature on emotion is growing in international relations, both Japan and the UN remain understudied. Especially in the formal and general context of the General Debate at the UN General Assembly we would expect low levels of emotion expressed in Japan’s diplomatic discourse. Thus, we ask: how (much) do Japanese diplomats use emotions at the General Assembly, and which ones? Since there is a lack of quantitative studies on emotions in diplomacy and since we are searching for subtle expressions of emotion, this paper is based on a sentiment analysis of the annual Japanese address during the General Debate at the UN General Assembly from 1990 to 2024. Our results show that there are emotions in Japan’s UN diplomacy, however at a relatively low level. Interestingly, we find a duality between (more present) positive and (less present) negative emotions. Moreover, there is a certain stability over time and four main topics can be distinguished. Rather than individual speakers or political parties, the international context seems more suitable to explain the varying use of these emotions.