A Comprehensive Study of the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) and the Parliamentary Diplomacy of Postwar Japan: From Domestic and Foreign Sources

2022 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 19K23109
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Research Activity Start-up
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund
• Review Section: 0103:History, archaeology, museology, and related fields
• Research Institution: Hiroshima University
• Principal Investigator: ITOH Kaori 広島大学, 文書館, 助教 (90849902)
• Project Period (FY): 2019-08-30 – 2023-03-31
• Keywords: 議員外交 / 議会外交 / 国民外交 / 列国議会同盟（IPU） / 日ソ関係 / セカンドトラック

Outline of Final Research Achievements

This study examined the maturation process of parliamentary diplomacy in Japan, which adopted the multilateral parliamentary diplomacy centered on the IPU that emerged in Europe in the early 20th century. It was found that parliamentary diplomacy was conducted before World War II by political forces opposed to the Meiji oligarchy and the monopoly of diplomacy by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs for the sake of independent diplomacy to achieve nationalism in state diplomacy, however after the war, with the full introduction of the parliamentary cabinet system and conservative unification, parliamentary diplomacy was internalized into government diplomacy and positioned as a complementary role to government diplomacy.

Free Research Field

日本近現代史

Academic Significance and Societal Importance of the Research Achievements

議員外交は今日、当局の政策決定に影響を持つ有識者レベルの交流・交渉として重要な一角を担っているが、本研究はIPUを通じた日本の多国間議員外交の歴史を初めて検証した。戦後の議院内閣制の本格化や冷戦構造のなかで日本が議員外交を成熟させた過程を実証的に検討し、日ソ両国の議員団が核軍縮や宇宙法の問題に関する熟議を通し友好関係を構築した事実などを解明した。本研究により、本義的には国内の政治課題を解決する機関である議会が持つ、対外的な政治アクターとしての側面が照射されたともに、議会政治の成熟に比例して充実を見る議員外交の軌跡を明らかにすることができた。