Japan aids armed forces of China's neighbors

Tracer bullets ricochet off their targets as the Japanese Ground Self-Defence Force Type 74 and Type 90 armoured tanks fire machine guns during a night annual training session at Higashifuji training field in Gotemba, west of Tokyo, August 21, 2012. Mt. Fuji is seen in the background.(Xinhua/Reuters)

Japan's Defense Ministry has begun providing technical assistance in "non-combat fields" such as landmine clearance and medical treatment to the armed forces of six countries surrounding China.

The official development assistance (ODA) handled by Japan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs bans funding armed forces overseas, but the technical assistance program being carried out by the Japan Self-Defense Forces falls outside the ODA parameters, the Asahi Shimbun, one of the five national newspapers in Japan, reported on Aug. 26.

The paper cited several Japanese officials as saying that the six countries that are receiving technical assistance from Japan's Defense Ministry are Indonesia, Vietnam, East Timor, Cambodia, Mongolia, and Tonga. The program is aimed at deepening cooperation with countries surrounding China, according to the report.

The assistance program falls under a Japanese initiative to "help nations in the Asia-Pacific region build up their ability to defend themselves." Japan added a new goal of "stabilizing the security environment in the Asia-Pacific region" to its National Defense Program Guidelines in late 2010.

According to Asahi Shimbun, this is another overseas military program the Self-Defense Forces has participated in besides the United Nations peacekeeping operations. Although the technical assistance is “strictly non-combat,” it will likely enhance the fighting capacity of the Self-Defense Forces.

Read the Chinese version at: 日本向中国周边国家军队提供技术支援, Source: People's Daily
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Japan, the deputy sheriff in Asia?

Since the United States declared to move its strategic focus towards the east, it keeps strengthening its alliance with Japan and emphasizing that this ally should play a "footstone" role in guaranteeing the security of the Asia-Pacific Region. Japan is cooperating greatly and its role in the regional security area is changing into the "deputy sheriff" of Asia for the United States. It is mainly reflected in five areas.

First, Japan is wantonly meddling in South China Sea affairs. Japan has declared many times its stand of emphasizing the “navigation freedom” of the South China Sea. Japan and the Philippines have signed a defensive cooperation agreement and will carry out joint maritime trainings and share maritime security intelligence. Japan and Vietnam have signed the “Maritime Strategic Security Agreement.” In addition, Japan has also decided to hold a special summit on the maritime security with the ASEAN.

Second, Japan is actively helping the United States weave the military partnership network in the Asia-Pacific Region. The military partnership network, which takes “the United States + Japan + one” (such as the United States + Japan + South Korea, the United States + Japan + Australia and the United States + Japan + India) as the framework, is extending from Northeast Asia and Southeast Asia to South Asia. They hold security consultation meetings and coordinate their stands periodically, or bring in advanced weapons in large scales to expand their armaments, or hold various military drills in turn. 

Third, Japan and the United States are promoting their diplomatic strategic cooperation actively and complementing and aiding each other tightly. After the United States removed its diplomatic obstacle with Myanmar, Japan immediately increased its investment, manpower and resources in Myanmar. Currently, the United States is trying to build the Mekong River area into a main foothold for its “return to the Asia-Pacific Region” and Japan already promised in a summit of Japan and five countries of the Mekong River valley held in April 2012 that it will offer 7.4 billion U.S. dollars of governmental development aids in next three years.

Fourth, Japan keeps breaking limits of the Peace Constitution to lay the foundation for serving as the “deputy sheriff” and realizing its dream of being a “normal great power.” After modifying the “Three Principles on Arms Export” and “Three Non-nuclear Principles,” Japan also wrote the words of “using the nuclear energy to make contributions for the national security” in its relevant laws. Currently, Japan is suggesting in public to lift the ban on the right of collective self-defense, showing a sign of recovering the militarism.

Fifth, Japan has given the performance of “buying the Diaoyu Islands” many times, significantly intensifying the Diaoyu Islands dispute. To certain extent, this action of Japan is also out of the consideration of serving as the vanguard for the United States to “return to the Asia-Pacific Region.”

The two anti-terrorism wars have consumed the United States a lot of energy, and therefore it has to assign a part of its “return” mission to Japan. And Japan also wants to seize this chance to improve its influence and status, build itself into a so-called “normal great power” and obtain the full political and military decision-making rights.

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