【Report】Summary of the lecture by Professor Mark Harrison and Dr. Jeong-Ran Kim

International Relationships for the Control of Disease (Professor Mark Harrison and Dr. Jeong-Ran Kim)

On December 4, 2025, Professor Mark Harrison and Dr. Jeong-Ran Kim of the University of Oxford gave presentation based on the control of infectious disease and its place in international relations at Ritsumeikan University.

Dr. Jeong-Ran Kim presented her research entitled “Epidemic Haemorrhagic Fever and International Relations: Japan and the United States.” She began by briefly explaining the medical definition of epidemic haemorrhagic fever (EHF) and outlining its symptoms. Dr. Kim then discussed EHF within the context of secondary literature, identifying gaps in existing scholarship, and addressed the first historical records of EHF along with the disease's historical development. Dr. Kim noted that EHF first appeared in Russia before re-emerging within the Japanese military during the Russo-Japanese War (1904–1905). She presented comprehensive information regarding Unit 731, which Japan established to investigate various epidemic diseases including EHF. She emphasized that the data collected by Unit 731 through unethical methods was subsequently acquired by the U.S. military, and then discussed how UN troops used this data during the Korean War (1950–1953) and examined its impact on the conflict. Dr. Kim’s presentation highlighted the importance of medical intelligence in armed conflicts and the challenges of applying medical ethics in this context.

Following Dr. Kim, Professor Mark Harrison delivered a thought-provoking presentation titled “Covid-19 and the “Decline of the West’.” Professor Harrison began by outlining the historical background of apocalyptic epidemic narratives, asserting that various cultures have developed their own versions of such narratives. He then argued that the narrative claiming COVID-19 revealed the weaknesses of Western societies, which emerged during the pandemic, represented a contemporary form of apocalyptic epidemic narrative. Professor Harrison provided a detailed analysis of how this narrative emerged. He noted that initially there was no clear ‘decline of the West’ narrative, but that this perception was later established through the WHO-China Joint Mission’s report on COVID-19, which was predominantly influenced by China. Professor Harrison maintained that this China-formulated narrative on Western decline has been adopted by certain elites within Western nations to destabilize governments, particularly in the US and UK. He then outlined the policies implemented by Western governments, specifically the UK and US, regarding COVID-19 and their approaches to addressing the associated challenges and narratives.

During the Q&A session, the audience raised many interesting questions on topics such as social cohesion in the West during COVID-19, the interplay between information, disinformation, and geopolitics, the securitization of COVID-19 by governments, aspects underestimated by policymakers when formulating COVID-19 policies, the state of perception and knowledge in Japanese society regarding Unit 731's activities, and how Russian and Japanese literature on EHF differs from Korean literature.