World Exhibitions in Japan: Stepping Stones in Japan-Bulgaria Relations

Evgeniy Kandilarov 

• May 23, 2025 / 17:30~19:00  

• SIIR Conference Room (1F, Building 13, Sophia University)  

• Hy-flex Format (No Pre-Registration Required) 

• Access to the venue：https://dept.sophia.ac.jp/is/ir/access/ 

• Zoom information for online participants:  

  • Meeting ID: 918 7904 0046  

  • Pass Code: 656726  

World exhibitions are an essential soft power tool as well as means for national branding. Japan clearly understands this key function and uses it skillfully in its foreign policy. Bulgaria has participated in all international exhibitions held in Japan, starting with the first one in Osaka in 1970. The lecture will try to answer the question why EXPO’70 was an event of paramount importance in Bulgaria-Japan relations during the Cold War. It will also trace the next stages in bilateral relations through the prism of Bulgaria's participation in the following exhibitions in Japan. Finally, the lecture will try to show the importance of Expo 2025 for Japan's international positions, and for the discovery of new opportunities in the relations between Bulgaria and Japan.  

Dr. Evgeniy KANDILAROV is an Associate Professor of East Asian Studies at the Japanese Studies Department of Sofia University (Bulgaria). He is the author of Bulgaria and Japan. From the Cold War to the 21st Century (2009) and East Asia and Bulgaria (2016) and co-author of Japan - Economy, Technology, Innovation and Management (2012) and Bulgaria and Japan. Politics, Diplomacy, Personalities and Events (2019). He is currently an Invited Visiting Professor at the Faculty of Liberal Arts, Sophia University. 

This event is organized by Tadashi Anno (Professor of Political Science, Sophia University) and jointly hosted by Sophia Institute of International Relations and the Institute of Comparative Culture.