Biden & Kishida join hands to strengthen Japan's military power

New Delhi: As China’s power grows and North Korea continues to test missiles, Japan is moving to revise its longstanding military pacifism, says The New York Times.

USA and Japan joined hands to transform Japan into a military power

In Washington on Friday, Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and President Biden vowed to work together to transform Japan into a military power. The meeting came a month after Japan announced plans to significantly increase its military spending. Before coming to the U.S., Kishida also met with European, British and Canadian leaders in their countries in an effort to try to lock in Japan’s new military pledges.

Such moves would have once been unthinkable: Japan renounced waging war after World War II. But conservatives have been working for decades to overhaul the pacifist clause in the Constitution, and the Japanese public has been largely supportive of moves to bolster the military.

Background:

Japan was infuriated by China’s lobbing of missiles around Taiwan in August, five of which landed near Japan. It is also wary of China’s activity around the disputed Senkaku Islands in the East China Sea. The U.S., which hopes Japan will become the linchpin for its Asian security interests, committed to its defense there.

What’s next:

After getting vocal support from Western officials, Kishida will try to get the Diet, Japan’s parliament, to help deliver on the military pledges.