Abstract 
Tense political relations are seen as a barrier to China’s public diplomacy with Japan. Despite various setbacks ,Confucius Institutes, a classic example of public diplomacy, have continued to stay open in Japan. This paper uses the Confucius Institute at Ritsumeikan (CIR) as a case study to explore how public diplomacy can be carried out when political relations between China and Japan are cold. It concludes that cold political relations do not necessarily mean public diplomacy will fail. Good cooperation with Japanese partners can bring positive results. Also, choosing the right partner is important; government “interference” should be avoided. Finally, China should deal with each Confucius Institute differently, and Japanese universities’ enthusiasm should be stimulated through encouragement and retreat mechanisms.
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