A question that appears to occupy the minds of many Japanese a great deal is “How does the world see Japan?”

So what is Japan’s position within the global political community? How much influence can a Japanese PM hope to exert internationally?

Depends who you ask.

Ask Mr Abe himself, and you’ll get a picture of the Japanese Prime Minister as a globally influential statesman. Returning from the recent G8 summit -

Giving himself a pat on the back, a beaming Abe told a press conference that he was “very satisfied” that discussions at the summit for a consensus on emissions reduction “were centered on my proposal” and that Japan’s initiative was included in the summit declaration.

The press, in fact, say he went further than that…

Abe’s carefully scripted language, including the repeated use of “I,” which is rare in Japanese, reflects the premier’s eagerness to impress the Japanese public with his achievements at the summit in hopes of improving his ailing support ratings just a month ahead of a crucial House of Councillors election.

This sugary treat was of course cooked up for domestic consumption. Meanwhile one wonders whether the go-getting PM is having anywhere near the impact he’s claiming.

In Germany, the Schweriner Volkszeitung and two other regional papers, in profiles of G8 country leaders, printed this picture of Mr Abe.

Yes. Quite.

The gentleman pictured is actually Norihiko Akagi, the newly installed Agriculture Minister (who replaced Toshikatsu Matsuoka, who recently committed suicide).

Don’t worry, Mr Abe. Your country still loves you. Well, perhaps not ‘love’. ‘Recognise’, at least.