Japan is the second nation after Germany to reform its military in the context of the China-Russian conflict and rising Chinese aggression.
It appears that another country has been compelled to abandon its long-standing position of being a non-military nation as a result of the war and China's aggressive behaviour in the region.
As regional tensions and Russia's invasion of Ukraine fuel war concerns worldwide, pacifist Japan has announced that it would soon begin a hitherto unthinkable $320 billion military buildup that will equip it with missiles capable of striking China and prepare it for a protracted struggle.
The country of Japan approved a new national security plan this week, one of the biggest changes to its defence since World War II. This represents a significant departure from the nation's long-held pacifist political philosophy.
The government of Japan's Prime Minister Fumio Kishida is concerned that Russia's precedent-setting actions may lead China to attack Taiwan, endangering the adjacent Japanese islands, impeding the flow of advanced semiconductors, and possibly blocking sea lanes that transport Middle Eastern oil.
According to the latest National Security Paper, China's strategic challenge to Japan is the largest it has ever faced, and Russia's invasion of Ukraine has seriously violated international laws that ban the use of force. The Japanese government announced on December 16 that as part of its comprehensive five-year plan and reworked national security strategy, it would also stockpile spare parts and other munitions, strengthen logistics, develop cyber-warfare capabilities, and work more closely with the United States and other like-minded nations to thwart threats to the existing international order.
Residents' Response Japan's territorial claim over disputed islands was made in a national security paper, to which neighbouring South Korea strongly objected. Tokyo's preparations for an unprecedented military buildup were warily reacted to.
In a statement, the foreign ministry of South Korea demanded that the territorial claims be immediately removed from Japan's national strategy documents. The ministry expressed the hope that Japan's new security policy would be implemented in a transparent manner while upholding the spirit of its pacifist constitution and would contribute to regional peace and stability.
Japanese public opposes tax hike to pay for expanding military expansion
UAE rover and a Japanese company's lander launch toward the moon
UAE rover and a Japanese company's lander launch toward the moon