Regional brakes on neo-militarism necessary: China Daily editorial

The extraordinary efforts made by Japanese Defense Minister Shinjiro Koizumi during the Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore over the weekend — seeking "security assurances" from the United States — lay bare Tokyo's anxiety: as Japan's remilitarization becomes increasingly blatant, it risks facing growing opposition from the region.

During their talks on the sidelines of the security forum, Koizumi and his US counterpart reached a series of agreements, including accelerating the joint production of missiles. The Japanese side announced these outcomes in a high-profile manner, as if they were the latest testament to the "solidarity" of its military cooperation with the US.

If Japan truly sought peace, Koizumi would not have gone to such lengths to deliver his telling performance before the nations of the region — countries all too familiar with Japan's old trick of saying one thing while doing another.

Data from the Japanese government reveal that orders from the Japanese Ministry of Defense have tripled over the past five years, and now constitute half of the government's public procurement orders. Historically, this military-industrial complex played a significant role in Japan's militarist expansion. That machines are roaring once again in the system indicates the dangerous direction in which the Sanae Takaichi government is leading the country.

This year marks the 80th anniversary of the opening of the Tokyo Trials, which delivered historical justice after World War II. It serves as a reminder of the consequences of a Japan ruled by de facto militarists. Meng Xiangqing, head of the People's Liberation Army expert delegation at the Shangri-La Dialogue, rightly questioned Japan's qualification to speak about "defense" cooperation, warning against any resurgence of militarism and attempts to challenge the post-WWII international order.

Is a country that has not thoroughly reckoned with the legacy of militarism truly qualified to speak about "defense" cooperation on the international stage? Can it win the trust of the international community — especially the Asian countries that once suffered from its aggression? These questions, raised by Meng during a panel discussion at the dialogue, deserve the full attention of the entire region.

The worrisome actions of Japan extend well beyond its borders. In Singapore, Koizumi also met with Philippine Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro Jr to finalize the transfer of decommissioned Japanese military vessels to Manila, aiming to better equip the Philippines for its provocative actions against China in the South China Sea.

On Thursday, the two countries announced they would hold talks on delimiting a so-called "exclusive economic zone" in the waters to the east of China's Taiwan island where China has an exclusive economic zone and continental shelf.

This constitutes a severe violation of China's maritime rights and interests, the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea and other international laws, and basic norms governing international relations, as Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning said.

There is no doubt that Japan stands at a crossroads again. The series of institutional constraints established in the postwar era — designed to prevent Japan from repeating the mistakes of its past — are now being systematically dismantled, step by step, by the right-wing forces in Japan. While the tactics employed by them are nothing new, for a nation that has never truly engaged in thorough self-reflection over its heinous wartime history, these methods serve to effectively reawaken the ambition, greed and hubris of a war machine that has long lain dormant beneath a veneer of peace.

During the war, Japanese society succumbed to a state of collective unconsciousness. Established moral compasses were arbitrarily altered, and the Japanese people could only toil diligently to facilitate the cruel objectives dictated by the militarists. Today, Japan seems once again ready to tread that same path.