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Ulterior Motives in White Paper on Japan's Defense
On July 28, 2000, the Japanese cabinet passed the "Japan's Defense"- the 2000 white paper on Japan's defense. In the white paper was a comment about increasing "vigilance against China's military trends." It talks about the quantity and deployment of China's missiles, stressing that China's medium-range missiles are capable of hitting Japan. It also says that China's naval ships are "very active."
Obviously, Japan has ulterior motives for making these remarks. It is trying to deflect attention from Japan's own expansion of its military and putting the focus on China.
China has always adopted a defensive strategy and expanded its military on modest scales. Its military activities have always been in line with international law. But the Japanese military strategy has shifted from "defending the homeland" to "dealing with the situation on its borders," going from the "defensive" to the "offensive." Moreover, it is attempting to bring China's Taiwan into its "situation on its borders." Once there is a "situation" in the Taiwan Straits, Japan could possibly take military action in conjunction with the US.
To train its ability to handle situations on its borders, Japan has increased its military exercises in the Pacific with the Americans, especially in the South China Seas. Japan ignores China's sovereignty over the Diaoyu Islands, turning a blind eye on the provocative activities of Japanese right wingers on the islands.
Japan has used the reason it faces "many threats" to cooperate with the American military. It invests nearly US$50 billion into its military every year, second most in the world. Japan already has the world's most advance military equipment such as the Zeus guided missile destroyer, F-2 fighter planes and M-90 tanks. Japan is developing its first class military equipment to interfere in the "situation on its border."
Thus, the world really needs to be vigilant of Japan's military trends.
There is another goal in raising "vigilance against China's military trends" in the new white paper on Japan's defense - it finds a new excuse to develop Japan's military.
This June, the heads of the two Koreas met for the first time, easing the confrontational atmosphere on the Korean peninsula. When DPRK leader Kim Il Jong met Russian President Vladimir Putin, he said that if other countries provided space technology, DPRK would scrap its missile program. This changes Japan's excuse of a "Korean threat" to develop its military.
Now, Japan needs to find a new "reason" to develop its military. China's medium-range missile, which "capable of hitting Japan" is the new excuse for Japan and the US to develop the theater missile defense system.
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