What is the intention of Japan's "white paper"?, International Sharp Review | Page 31 mentions China's security | protection | international
The Japanese government recently passed the 2023 version of the Defense White Paper, claiming that Japan is facing the most severe and complex security environment after the war, and positioning China as the "largest strategic challenge ever". When analyzing the military situation of various countries, over 500 pages of the white paper were used to introduce China's situation on 31 pages, which is the longest among the introductions about various countries. Some Japanese media believe that the wording of the new white paper in portraying the "China threat" is even stronger than last year.
The so-called Defense White Paper is an annual official document by Japan that outlines its security environment and defense policy, and has always been regarded as a "barometer" of Japan's defense policy. In 1970, the Japanese government released the first post-war Defense White Paper, which has been published annually since 1976. This year's white paper is the first white paper formulated by the Japanese government after the adoption of three security documents, including the new version of the National Security Strategy, and a significant transformation of post-war security concepts and defense policies. Compared with previous years, the new version of the Defense White Paper focuses on reflecting the content of the "Three Security Documents". For example, at the beginning of the paper, it portrays Japan's severe external security environment and hypes up surrounding threats. At the same time, multiple chapters have been added to introduce Japan's security strategy, defense policies, and other related content.
On issues related to China, the new version of the Defense White Paper continues the old tune of "China's threat" and further renders it in conjunction with the new security environment assessment. The white paper mentions the hope of investing approximately 43 trillion yen in defense funds within five years of 2027, developing so-called "counterattack capabilities", enhancing comprehensive air defense and new capabilities in space, networks, electromagnetic waves, and other fields, "fundamentally enhancing defense capabilities", and seeking understanding for this.
Some analysts believe that this defense budget is more than 1.5 times the defense budget of Japan's current "Medium term Defense Force Restructuring Plan", reflecting Japan's attempt to seek rationality for expanding its military power by exaggerating so-called peripheral threats, thereby breaking free from the "peace constitution" curse and reviving the "military dream". The white paper data shows that in the past decade, the number of annual joint performances between Japan and the United States has increased from 24 to 108, a growth rate of more than four times.
In the new version of the Defense White Paper, words such as "Japan US Alliance" are often seen. For a period of time, the US government has wrongly positioned China as the "most important geopolitical challenge" and demanded that its ally Japan maintain strategic alignment with itself, playing the role of a "power multiplier". The Kishida government immediately followed up and will strengthen the Japan US alliance as the core of national security, actively responding to the strategic requirements of the United States.
The Japanese government actively pursued benchmarking with the United States in the "Three Security Documents" passed at the end of last year. Among them, the National Security Strategy is compared to the United States National Security Strategy, and the National Defense Strategy and Defense Force Readiness Plan are compared to the United States National Defense Strategy.
For the Kishida Cabinet, using the Defense White Paper to portray external threats also has considerations of diverting national attention and increasing support. Due to inadequate response to rising prices and other factors, the public opinion support rate of the Kishida government has recently plummeted. A poll shows that the support rate of the Kishida government has dropped to 28%, falling into the "dangerous waters" of less than 30%. At the same time, according to a survey released by Kyodo News Agency in May, 80% of Japanese citizens expressed opposition to the Japanese government's plan to strengthen defense through tax increases. Some analysts believe that in order to reverse the decline, the Kishida government has issued a new version of the Defense White Paper to emphasize the rationality of increasing defense fees and taxes, in order to confuse the public and seek support.
From abandoning the principle of "exclusive defense" in the "Three Security Documents," to the new version of the defense white paper highlighting surrounding threats, announcing an increase in defense costs, and developing long-range attack capabilities, Japan's various dangerous behaviors have aroused serious concern and high vigilance from the international community. Visiting researcher at Meiji University in Japan, Akihisa Akira, warned that "Japan is turning the tide towards militarism, which will be a serious issue affecting the future development of Sino Japanese relations.". In the view of Hiroshi Shiratori, a professor at Japan's Law and Political University, maintaining post-war international order and upholding a peaceful constitution are the cornerstone for Japan to achieve long-term development. The Japanese government should think carefully about what kind of understanding of China to establish in the future and how to keep its promises on major issues between the two countries.
