Japan should do more to alert its public of the growing military threat from China and rethink its rejection of offensive weapons.

more than that- it needs to ween its economy off China by improving its access to other markets and by slowly phasing out the number of factories it has in China.

Reject ALL weapons and militaristic expansion.

China increases its military to counter the American threat and now Japan has to increase its military to counter the Chinese threat? Where will it all end?

China increases its military to counter the American threat

LOL, the last time USA ventured into China, it was to help liberate it from the Japanese.

At the end of the war, it helped China in negotiation with other imperialists. Every inch of the western pacific was conquered by USA (especially the bits in the cow's tongue / dash line), yet it gave it all away except for strategic locations like Guam to ensure peace and stability in the region. Its dominance has resulted in peace.

China's rise on the other hand has resulted in conflicts, an arms race, and very nervous neighbours. Please spend your 50 cents peacefully.

japan is just a big american base (proxy), if america attacks china , it will be though japan .

that is why japan want to change the constitution.

that is why they ignore citizen regarding the Okinawa base expansion.

the increase of tax is just to pay american soldier needs and the future war.

is it not clear enough?

I used to think that Japan should not change the constitution, because I don’t think they have altered society in a way to protect from another situation like their aggression in WWII, and America was more stable and therefore the situation as it was was the best for all.

But Trump’s America has shown that they are actually less stable than the Japanese. From the perspective of risk management, I think there is now less risk if Japan changes the constitution and takes over their own defence. Even though I still don’t think they have taken measures to prevent another aggression.

@ Sh1mon M4sada

"Its dominance has resulted in peace."

Tell that to the Vietnamese, Laotians and Cambodians.

When you have aggressive expansionist dictatorships just across the water, you need to be able to defend yourself.

Rejecting all weapons and militaristic expansion? Fully agree, tell that to China! When they stop then Japan won’t need to strengthen its defences, a situation to be hoped for.

japan is not a sovereign country . just a military port and airport.

Is China about to attack Japan? Nobody told the millions of Chinese tourists in Japan, I guess.

gokai_wo_manekuToday  08:07 pm JST

Is China about to attack Japan? Nobody told the millions of Chinese tourists in Japan, I guess.

Japan is kissing the feet of China to survive economically.

let s be honest , the made in Japan is long gone.

moreover regarding the demographic problem , the Japanese population will not exist 50 years later.

ghost towns everywhere will be.

Aly RustomOct. 28  07:59 am JST more than that- it needs to ween its economy off China by improving its access to other markets and by slowly phasing out the number of factories it has in China.

By all means. However, this has been widely discussed in the U.S. and it would take more than five years to shift production to other, low cost nations. To date, neither Vietnam nor India, for two examples, are so inclinded (Vietnam) or capable (India).

Toasted HereticOct. 28  10:17 am JST Reject ALL weapons and militaristic expansion.

By all means, if two of your closest neighbours are Canada and Mexico.

gokai_wo_manekuOct. 28  08:07 pm JST Is China about to attack Japan? Nobody told the millions of Chinese tourists in Japan, I guess.

In economic terms, they don't need to attack. They have already bested Japan in that regard.

Aly RustomOct. 28  07:59 am JST more than that- it needs to ween its economy off China by improving its access to other markets and by slowly phasing out the number of factories it has in China.

By all means. However, this has been widely discussed in the U.S. and it would take more than five years to shift production to other, low cost nations. To date, neither Vietnam nor India, for two examples, are so inclinded (Vietnam) or capable (India).

Toasted HereticOct. 28  10:17 am JST Reject ALL weapons and militaristic expansion.

By all means, if two of your closest neighbours are Canada and Mexico.

gokai_wo_manekuOct. 28  08:07 pm JST Is China about to attack Japan? Nobody told the millions of Chinese tourists in Japan, I guess.

In economic terms, they don't need to attack. They have already bested Japan in that regard.

Sh1mon M4sada -

You absolutely capture the core argument! The law of unintended consequences.

The deluded west, essentially created the PRC and N Korea during World War 2.

The West, more so, the US, did liberate China and the Koreas from the might of the valiant Imperial Army of Japan.

Absent the US intervention in the Pacific theater of battle that finally rescued and saved China and the two Koreas from the yoke of the battle-hardened Japanese, those three countries would today be speaking Japanese as their lingua franca.