Is PM Aso half-stepping on collective self-defense?

The Yomiuri Shimbun ran a story on Prime Minister Taro Aso half-stepping or playing politics when it comes to discussing Japan’s right to (re)militarize. Aso remains unable to begin discussion to alter the government’s constitutional interpretation that prohibits the country from exercising the right to collective self-defense. Former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has urged Aso, his close friend, to make the issue the party’s campaign pledge for the next House of Representatives election, and changing the government’s interpretation has been Aso’s stock argument, as well. Aso, however, apparently does not want to create any source of contention before the next Lower House election.

 

 On April 23, Aso held a meeting at his office with former Ambassador to the United States Shunji Yanai, who also the chair of the Council for Rebuilding the Legal Foundation for National Defense, an advisory panel to the prime minister established when Abe was premier. In the meeting, Aso was briefed on a report produced by the council last June. The report calls the government to allow exercising the right to collective self-defense for strengthening the Japan-U.S. alliance and playing an active role in international contributions. It was produced during the tenure of Yasuo Fukuda, Abe’s successor. Fukuda was dismissive about changing the interpretation, and the matter has been left unaddressed since.

Piracy and Japan’s Constitution

In a special to the Japan Times, Craig Martin, a Canadian lawyer currently working on a doctorate at the University of Pennsylvania on the relationship between constitutional and international law constraints on the use of armed force, writes about piracy and Japan’s constitution. I enjoy reading, discussing and debating the many insightful articles found on Mr. Martin’s blog and in the Japan Times. As I stated in my Japan Times article, “This time around with the global war on terror, Japan got its fingernails dirty, so the next logical move is to lend a hand.” Check out Mr. Martin’s latest below:

“Once again the issue of Japanese contributions to international security efforts is the subject of tortured debate. And once again the proposed government policy, and aspects of the debate itself, reveals fundamental misunderstanding of the relationship between Article 9 of the Constitution and the relevant principles of international law.

This time, the issue relates to maritime piracy off the coast of Somalia, and the proposed deployment of Japanese naval vessels to the area. Predictably, the issue has triggered debate over the effect of the war-renouncing provision of the Constitution. A careful analysis, however, would suggest that the Article 9 prohibition on the use of force would not apply to the deployment of naval forces, or their use of weapons, to protect shipping from pirates in international waters.

Japanese military assumes more global role

This seems like a good follow-up piece to my conversation yesterday with a writer from the Nikkei Keizai Shimbun. The near future will prove very interesting for Japan and its quest for military parity in Asia.

CAMP MAKOMANAI, Japan—Col. Kenji Sawai, commander of Japan’s 18th Infantry Regiment, stands in his headquarters dressed from head to foot in white camouflage. Skis clutter the hallways of his outpost in the snow-covered mountains of northern Japan, along with stacks of white ponchos, gloves and boots.

 
For decades, the mission for Japanese officers such as Sawai has been fairly straightforward: Defend the homeland. Narrowly defined, for Sawai and his infantrymen, that means protecting the island of Hokkaido, where the regiment is based, from invasion.

Now that definition is changing.

Japan commissions Hyuga helicopter carrier

  

Here is a follow-up to my previous posts on Japan Rising in the Asia-Pacific. The Hyuga is in the same weight range of the European “Harrier carriers” and can be an effective platform for fixed-wing aircraft. As Harold C. Hutchison ”In essence, Japan will have a ship about the size of the vessels that were the centerpiece of the British response to a crisis halfway around the world 25 years ago, with a flight deck and an offset island. They performed well, too – just ask Argentina. The Hyuga means that Japan is back in the power projection business.”

The Maritime Self-Defense Force commissioned on Wednesday its largest helicopter-carrying warship amid concerns its eye-catching flight deck makes it look like a small aircraft carrier.

The acquisition of a combat ship that can project force far from Japan raises concerns in Asia and may even spur rivalry with China, which is rumored to covet an aircraft carrier of its own.

China to build two nuclear-powered aircraft carriers

China continues to rise. It will require billions of dollars and a great deal of the country’s military design capacity. China will end up with a much smaller ship than the American super-carriers, with weapons about a generation behind. But this will still put it far ahead of its neighbors — no East Asian country currently has carrier capacity. I wonder how long Japan will continue to sit on the fence and watch?!

The Asahi Shimbun reports: The Chinese military is planning to build two nuclear-powered aircraft carriers in 2020 or later as China’s first nuclear flattops, military officials have revealed. China has already announced plans to build two conventional aircraft carriers from this year. However, a nuclear-powered carrier can move around for a long period of time without being refueled. The plan therefore can be noted as a full-blown ocean-going move.

China to build aircraft carriers for first time

Zurui: I don’t know if “Made in China” has the same ring to an aircraft carrier but this is one Chinese product other than tainted gyoza that will catch the attention of Tokyo. It should also give Aso and the next prime minister (PM) of Japan (I think a new PM will be in place before Golden Week) firepower to expand the might of Japan’s Self Defense Forces (SDF). With the current fence-sitting and back-and-forth from Tokyo regarding the SDF’s role in combatting piracy off the coast of Somalia, I think that China’s “official” announcement of building new toys might be the best present the holiday season could bring for Japan. 

A South Korean newspaper has stated that “A source close to Chinese military affairs said . . . that China has been promoting the construction of a 93,000-ton atomic-powered carrier under a plan titled 085 Project. The nation also has a plan to build a 48,000-ton non-nuclear-powered carrier under the so-called 089 Project.”

One thing to remember is that Japan has the ability to project its power in China’s territory with its new JMSDF DDH-181 Hyuga-class destroyer (pictured above) and upgrade of fighter aircraft in Okinawa. The ”13,500 ton” ton helicopter-carrying destroyer is similar in design to a small aircraft carrier. The Hyuga can be modified to have VTOL Sea Harriers instead of helicopters. As I have constantly stated here at BT, Tokyo has been on a path to make Beijing blink if the need arises!

Asahi Shimbun: “The Chinese military will begin in 2009 to build aircraft carriers in Shanghai for the first time and will complete two midsize carriers weighing 50,000-60,000 tons by 2015, according to military and shipbuilding company sources. In addition, the Varyag, a Soviet-made 60,000-ton aircraft carrier, which is currently moored in the port of Dalian, Liaoning, will shortly complete its renovation and is expected to be recommissioned for training purposes. Carrier-borne aircraft pilot training has also begun.

Books on Japan

I received an email from a college student asking me to recommend books on Japan. Below are five books that I use for research and teaching. 

1. The African-American Encounter with Japan & China, Black Internationalism in Asia, 1895-1945 (Gallicchio)
2. African-American Views of the Japanese (Kearney)
3. Japan Rising (Pyle)
4. Japan’s Reluctant Realism (Green)
5. Japanese the Manga Way (Lammers)

Click here for additional recommendations, and my views, on Japan! If you are interested in purchasing any of the books, you can order via Amazon (and help Black Tokyo earn a small commission which will be used to pay for website hosting).

Enjoy!

 

Amazon.com Widgets 

Weapons use against pirates constitutional

I have previously blogged about Japan slowly returning to “normal nation” status in the international community. I believe that Japan’s Self Defense Force (SDF) will play a larger role “militarily” in the years to come, especially since there is nervous talk in Tokyo regarding the US-Japan security relationship. The article below is another example of how Japan will test the constitutional waters regarding the SDF’s use of force.

This in from the ASAHI : The government, now studying measures [to protect Japanese tankers and other commercial ships] against pirates that are rampant in waters off the coast of Somalia, has released a view allowing the Self-Defense Forces to use weapons in order to crack down on pirates there. The government says the SDF’s use of weapons for that purpose does not fall under the constitutional prohibition of Japan from using armed force overseas. However, the pirates in the offing of Somalia are armed with rockets and other weapons. Moreover, the pirates are organized. The SDF’s use of weapons against armed pirates will therefore likely result in a full-fledged battle with them. There are many challenges in store, such as what to do about guidelines for weapons use or the rules of engagement (ROE).

It’s time for America to go and for Japan to rearm!

I am afraid that Japan might head in a direction that will tie its hands tighter because of its masochistic view of history that is gripping Japan today. I am concerned that unless someone stops it, Japan might fall in the near future.

Zurui: Tamogami holds no punches in his interview. His view of white nations has been “quietly” discussed at various levels of government and I am extremely curious how this will play out in the Japanese media. I am also very curious curious to hear what he thinks of President-elect Obama and the direction he will take with Japan. I will add additional commentary later!

Tamogami: I have been dismissed from the post of Air Self-Defense Force (ASDF) chief of staff. Since I have acted based on my belief, I have no intention of retracting my series of views. To begin with, I do not understand why I have to be criticized. I said, “Japan was a good country,” and I was told, “You are fired.”

The assertion of the Aso administration and the Liberal Democratic Party was: “In the government’s view, Japan was a bad country. You should not have described Japan as a good country.” I was forced to leave public office because I praised my own country. Is there any country in the world that is as absurd as Japan?

As if to add insult to injury, not only the LDP but also the Democratic Party of Japan fiercely criticized me. They pursued the government’s responsibility, saying, “Why did you make a person who says Japan was a good country the ASDF chief of staff?” The DPJ said: “A person who says Japan was a rotten country should become the top SDF officer.”

Democratic Party of Japan President Ichiro Ozawa wrote a book titled Blueprint for a New Japan, aiming to turn Japan into a normal country. His son was an SDF member, as well. I wonder what has happened to him and his party.

The U.S.-Japanese Alliance in a New Era

Michael Auslin’s new report (with Christopher Griffin) is up at the AEI website: The U.S.-Japanese Alliance in a New Era.

For nearly five decades, the U.S.-Japanese alliance has underwritten peace and security in the Asia Pacific. The alliance has allowed for the forward basing of tens of thousands of American troops and cooperation between the two countries on a wide range of security issues. The alliance is being tested today by the economic and military rise of China, the continuing crisis in North Korea, and the struggle to maintain the tide of democratic reform in the Asia-Pacific region.