Japanese troops' departure for Iraq signals shift in defense policy: Article

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Last updated at: (Beijing Time) Friday, January 02, 2004

Japanese troops' departure for Iraq signals shift in defense policy: Article

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A contingent of Japan's Self-Defense Forces left for Iraq in late 2003, indicating Japan's intention to become a political and military power and presages a shift in its defense strategy, a Chinese newspaper said Thursday.

The deployment of Japanese troops in a foreign country is against the country's pacifist constitution and also its public opinion, China's major newspaper People's Daily said in a signed article.

The deployment is unconstitutional because Japan's constitution renounces the right to go to war and prohibits the nation from having military forces except for self-defense, the article noted.

It said the Japanese parliament enacted a law in July, allowing troops to be sent to Iraq but limiting them to "non-combat" zones. However, there is no such "non-combat" zone in Iraq because US President George W. Bush has declared Iraq a major anti-terrorism battlefield.

The article added that right-wing politicians in Japan argue that "combat" refers to an organized and planned military action by a nation or a similar body and the fight with Iraqi guerrillas is not a "combat."

"But if the deployment in Iraq is not against the constitution, why did Japan's right-wing politicians attempt to revise the pacifist constitution?" the article asked.

Besides, the article said, the decision to send troops to Iraq has met strong opposition from a majority of the Japanese. Recent polls showed that about 90 percent of the people surveyed either opposed overseas deployment of troops or cautioned the government to be careful.

In face of mounting opposition, Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi said public opinion is right sometimes, but misleads politics from time to time.

Japan's government also plans to consider legislation that would relax a long-standing ban against preemptive military strikes, allowing troops to fire at suspicious vessels and armed spies, even outside the country's borders, the article said.

Under its post-World War II constitution, Japanese troops are barred from opening fire unless they are attacked.

Japan's recent actions have aroused great concern in East Asia, the article pointed out. It is understandable that Japan wants to be a normal country, it said, adding that short of a sincere apology for its wartime crimes, the country's deployment of troops in Iraq has caused other Asian countries to have misgivings about Japan.

Still worse is the fact that some politicians visited the shrine housing the tablets of Class-A war criminals of World War II, seriously hurting the feelings of other Asian peoples, the article added.

It is very difficult for Japan to become a responsible country if it does not take measures to disperse the mistrust and worries of other Asian countries, the article warned.

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