First modification:
The Japanese government approved this Friday a radical reform of its defense doctrine with the aim of counteracting the military power of Beijing, perceived as an “unprecedented strategic challenge” for the security of the archipelago.
Japan’s pacifists, defenders of a Constitution that renounced at the end of World War II to participate in international warfare, suffered a severe setback today when the government announced that it will double its military spending and have weapons capable of reaching other countries.
Japan has a ceiling for defense of 1% of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP), or an equivalent to about 34,000 million euros. That amount will be doubled to 2 percent of GDP by fiscal year 2027.
Some legislators interpret that attacking enemy bases falls within the category of self-defense stipulated in the Japanese Constitution, which limits armed attacks by its army to protecting the archipelago.
Also read: “Germany: From postwar pacifism to rearmament in the face of the Russian threat”
Heavy military spending is expected to benefit US makers of long-range missiles, such as Tomahawk cruise missiles, with a range of 1,000 miles.
Japan’s defense policy reform announced Friday will “strengthen and modernize” the military alliance with the United States, White House National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan said.
“Japan’s goal of significantly increasing defense investment…is going to strengthen and modernize the US-Japan alliance,” Sullivan said Friday.
On Thursday the government of Prime Minister Fumio Kishida had announced a plan to finance military spending that included collecting from smokers, raising corporate taxes and reprogramming the budget dedicated to the reconstruction of the areas affected by the triple disaster of earthquake, tsunami and accident. 2011 nuke.
Also read: “Germany’s largest rearmament operation since the end of the Cold War”
Although these changes are backed by public opinion, it is a major shift for a country whose pacifist constitution, adopted after its defeat in World War II, prohibits it from having a conventional army.
Even before its publication, Japan’s new policy angered Beijing, which often criticizes Japan’s militarism in the first half of the 20th century, which had China as one of its main victims.
China is “firmly opposed” to this policy that “departs from Japan’s commitment to bilateral relations and consensus” with Beijing and that “contains baseless slander against China,” the Foreign Ministry spokesman criticized on Wednesday. , Wang Wenbin.
