On the 1st, a post titled 'Why do French people like Japan so much?' appeared on China's social media platform Xiaohongshu (RED), and it received a lot of reactions.

According to the poster, when they visited France, they were mistaken for a Japanese person on the street and asked for a commemorative photo. However, when the person realized the poster was Chinese, they left with a wry smile. Additionally, a French person the poster met on an app also loved Japan, and the reason was 'Digimon,' which the poster also liked during childhood. The poster also mentioned that 'when French people travel to Asia, they generally go to Japan,' and asked, 'Just how popular is Japan in France?'

In response, Chinese netizens commented with remarks such as: 'It's not just France,' 'Actually, Japan's international reputation is very high,' 'Excluding China, there's no country that dislikes Japan, right? YouTube is overflowing with posts from Western influencers praising Japan endlessly,' 'Excluding China and North Korea (they like Japan),' and 'Even on Xiaohongshu, nine out of ten users located overseas like Japan.'

There were also opinions like: 'You can understand it if you think about why (global) stars and football clubs want to go to Japan,' 'An American friend who studied abroad in France told me that 'French people absolutely love Japanese anime,'' and 'The influence of Japanese anime, manga, and games from the last century was so widespread that it swept the world. Just 'Dragon Ball' alone popularized Japanese anime globally. Their cultural export is amazing.'

Furthermore, one user commented: 'Judging from the reactions of my relatives living in the US when they visited Japan, I think many Western cities have low convenience. Japan has convenience stores everywhere, the streets are clean, and toilets are free and very convenient (which is normal from our perspective). Moreover, many of them grew up watching Japanese anime and have an understanding of Japan. Japan's attitude towards the West is also good, and the media only reports on the positive aspects.'

In addition, comments such as: 'I also like Japan,' 'Chinese people also like Japan. How many people travel to Japan every year? If Japan ever waives visas for China, a huge number of people will flock to Japan,' and 'Normal people would want to interact with civilized and well-educated individuals,' were also received. (Translation/Editing: Kitada)