TaiShang
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Real threat to regional peace comes from aggressive Japan, not China
A newly published white paper by the Japanese Ministry of Defense has again hyped up the "China threat," even as Prime Minster Shinzo Abe's cabinet itself has been engaging in regional destabilization.
Expressing strong concern about China's military build-up, the paper called for the cabinet's permission to enable a collective self-defense shift of "historic" significance, bolstering Abe's ambition to militarize the island country.
Such deliberate ignorance of the dangerous path the country has been led down looks even more alarming, when noted that the paper referenced in particular to China's declaration in November of an air defense identification zone.
It said China's move was extremely dangerous, and could escalate tensions and trigger an unwanted clash.
However, what has actually happened is that Japan has increased its surveillance of the region and its aggressiveness in its military interactions with other countries.
Japan's self-defense forces scrambled fighter jets 810 times in the fiscal year of 2013, up 243 times from the previous year, according to the white paper.
It is the first time in 24 years that the number has topped 800, with roughly half of the total aimed at China, the ministry said.
The so-called China threat has, however, proved a failed attempt by Japan to create a necessary demon in order to justify its military expansion.
The trick is not new. Such claims have been recurrent in Japan's defense white papers for more than 20 years, and especially since Abe first became prime minister in 2006.
Instead of seeing China become a real threat, we have witnessed an increasingly aggressive Japan, a country that has broken its postwar pacifist pledges and looks poised to assert its military presence over the Asia-Pacific region.
Just as many in the Japanese media have pointed out, if Tokyo persists in its efforts to become a military power, Japan itself could become a destabilizing factor in the region.
They also warned that the Abe cabinet's controversial move has caused the government's approval ratings to dip.
A recent poll in Japan shows that more than 60 percent of those surveyed objected to the collective self-defense move, while over 80 percent believed the government had not provided sufficient explanations of related cabinet decisions.
Japan's defense policy is a mess. It needs a thorough and objective reassessment of public opinion as well as of regional situations.
Instead of clinging on to certain impractical political values, the Abe cabinet has to reassure its people and neighboring countries of the future positioning of its national defense.
This is a commentary from the Xinhua News Agency. opinion@globaltimes.com.cn
A newly published white paper by the Japanese Ministry of Defense has again hyped up the "China threat," even as Prime Minster Shinzo Abe's cabinet itself has been engaging in regional destabilization.
Expressing strong concern about China's military build-up, the paper called for the cabinet's permission to enable a collective self-defense shift of "historic" significance, bolstering Abe's ambition to militarize the island country.
Such deliberate ignorance of the dangerous path the country has been led down looks even more alarming, when noted that the paper referenced in particular to China's declaration in November of an air defense identification zone.
It said China's move was extremely dangerous, and could escalate tensions and trigger an unwanted clash.
However, what has actually happened is that Japan has increased its surveillance of the region and its aggressiveness in its military interactions with other countries.
Japan's self-defense forces scrambled fighter jets 810 times in the fiscal year of 2013, up 243 times from the previous year, according to the white paper.
It is the first time in 24 years that the number has topped 800, with roughly half of the total aimed at China, the ministry said.
The so-called China threat has, however, proved a failed attempt by Japan to create a necessary demon in order to justify its military expansion.
The trick is not new. Such claims have been recurrent in Japan's defense white papers for more than 20 years, and especially since Abe first became prime minister in 2006.
Instead of seeing China become a real threat, we have witnessed an increasingly aggressive Japan, a country that has broken its postwar pacifist pledges and looks poised to assert its military presence over the Asia-Pacific region.
Just as many in the Japanese media have pointed out, if Tokyo persists in its efforts to become a military power, Japan itself could become a destabilizing factor in the region.
They also warned that the Abe cabinet's controversial move has caused the government's approval ratings to dip.
A recent poll in Japan shows that more than 60 percent of those surveyed objected to the collective self-defense move, while over 80 percent believed the government had not provided sufficient explanations of related cabinet decisions.
Japan's defense policy is a mess. It needs a thorough and objective reassessment of public opinion as well as of regional situations.
Instead of clinging on to certain impractical political values, the Abe cabinet has to reassure its people and neighboring countries of the future positioning of its national defense.
This is a commentary from the Xinhua News Agency. opinion@globaltimes.com.cn
japan 
japan 
china 
