Concerns over N. Korea's unpredictable regime and China's expansionist policies have forced Japan to seek reinterpretation of parts of the constitution that ban the nation from having an offensive military capability.
Image: Reuters/T. Hanai
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The Japanese government is considering upgrading the largest ships in the Maritime Self-Defense Force's fleet to enable it to operate a new generation of fighter aircraft, although there are concerns at home that transforming two Izumo class warships — presently designated as helicopter destroyers — into aircraft carriers will contravene the constitutional clause on Japan not possessing offensive military capabilities.
China has expressed similar reservations, although for "historical" reasons rather than fears over Japan's constitution. Beijing was quick to warn Tokyo to "act prudently" in the purchase of Lockheed Martin F-35B Lightning fighters, the short take-off and vertical landing variant of the stealth fighter, and carrying out upgrades to the Izumo and the Kaga, the only two helicopter destroyers in the Japanese navy.
The government insists the constitution does not specifically ban Japan from having aircraft carriersImage: picture-alliance/Kyodo
Commenting on the reports, a spokesperson for the Chinese Foreign Ministry said that enhancing the capabilities of Izumo-class ships would inevitably attract the attention of Japan's neighbors for "historical reasons" — a clear nod at the nation's use of aircraft carriers to carry out the attack on the US Pacific Fleet at Pearl Harbor in 1941 and subsequent operations during World War II.
No aircraft carrier ban
Analysts point out that the Japanese government insists that the constitution does not specifically ban Japan from having aircraft carriers and that they should be considered defensive weapons rather than power-projection platforms.
"Even though these ships already look very much like aircraft carriers, they are officially classified as helicopter destroyers, but the changing security environment in the Asia-Pacific region means that Tokyo believes it now needs a full flat-top capable of handling stealth fighters," said Jeff Kingston, director of Asian Studies at the Japan campus of Temple University.
"That is a major development that follows Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's doctrine of easing the restraints that have been put on the Japanese military since the end of the war," he told DW.
The Japanese military believes it faces two primary threats. The most immediate is North Korea, which is becoming increasingly belligerent and unpredictable, even though it is under strong international sanctions. Those sanctions have so far not stopped the regime from developing increasingly capable long-range ballistic missiles and a growing stockpile of nuclear warheads.
The other threat is a China that is apparently bent on expanding areas of the Asia-Pacific region that it controls. Beijing has already effectively seized reefs and atolls in the South China Sea that are also claimed by Vietnam, the Philippines, Taiwan and Brunei, while it has also stepped up aggressive military patrolling close to Taiwan.
Tokyo's biggest concern is related to the Sino-Japanese tensions over Senkaku/Diaoyu islands in the East China Sea, a group of uninhabited islets which lie half-way between Japan and China. They are administered by Tokyo but are claimed by Beijing.
Effectively undefended, Tokyo fears that Chinese troops could very quickly occupy and militarize the islands. Consequently, Japan is developing new defensive capabilities that would be used to retake the islands, with the upgraded Izumo-class ships a key part of that as F-35s would be able to provide close-in support over the territory.
Of the two, Kingston believes that North Korea is presently at the forefront of Tokyo's thinking when it comes to the Izumo warships.
"Japan is clearly very anxious about the threat posed by North Korea, which fired 20 missiles in 2017," he said. "The feeling is that Japan needs to beef up its anti-missile defenses at home, as well as have the ability to strike at targets in North Korea if there is a direct threat to Japan.
"And the argument is that an aircraft carrier that would be tasked with carrying out a pre-emptive attack on targets inside North Korea, would be acting defensively because it would be protecting Japan," he said.
Kingston dismisses China's objections to Japan deploying aircraft carriers.
The future of Japan's constitution, explained
After a landslide victory, Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has vowed to pursue his ambitious plans to revise the constitution's pacifist nature. DW examines the parts he wants to change and the obstacles in the way.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/C. Jue
Postwar constitution
Drafted in the wake of Japan's surrender at the end of World War II, the Japanese constitution established democratic processes, enshrined the role of the Emperor and ensured the country's pacifist nature. But decades have passed since its non-Japanese writers hashed out Japan's political future. A new wave has emerged, pushing for the recognition of Japan's right to maintain a standing military.
Image: picture-alliance/akg-images
Article 9: 'Forever renounce war'
Article 9 of Japan's constitution enshrines the country's pacifist nature. The first part of the article states that "Japanese people forever renounce war as a sovereign right of the nation," while the second stipulates it will not maintain military. But Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has proposed revising parts of the constitution that forbid the country from maintaining a standing military.
Image: picture-alliance/CPA Media
The question of recognition
While Japan's constitution forbids the country maintain a standing military, it nonetheless has one of the best-equipped militaries in the world. Tokyo justifies the existence of the Self Defense Forces (SDF) to defend the nation in the event it ever comes under attack. But Prime Minister Shinzo Abe wants to change that by amending the constitution to codify the status quo.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/F. Robichon
Checks, balances and referendums
While Abe has the two-thirds majority in parliament to vote through constitutional changes, he vowed not to do so. In order to amend the constitution – which has never occurred since its inception – both legislative chambers need to pass it with two-thirds of the vote. Afterwards, it is put to a national referendum, which only requires a simple majority in favor for it to be accepted.
Image: picture-alliance/NurPhoto/R.A. de Guzman
Pacifist ideals endure
While public opinion is split on whether to revise the constitution, few voters see it as a priority. Most polls have shown that Japanese voters want to keep the country's pacifist ideals as they are enshrined in the constitution. In a poll for the top-selling Yomiuri newspaper, only 35 percent of respondents wanted Abe to recognize Japan's military, while 42 percent said they opposed the idea.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/C. Jue
Political divide
Even with support from his party and like-minded conservatives, Abe faces many hurdles to execute his vision. There are even differences among pro-change lawmakers on what the changes might look like. But that hasn't fazed Abe. "I have renewed my determination to secure people's lives and peaceful living, no matter what," said Abe after his party's victory at the polls.
Image: picture alliance/AP Photo
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"Japan will say — quite rightly — that it lives in a dangerous neighborhood, that it cannot continue to bury its head in the sand of unilateral pacifism and that it exists in a very different threat environment than it did in the 20th century," he said.
"China cannot complain; it is developing its own aircraft carrier capabilities and its military budget has seen double-digit growth rates for the last 20 years or so and presently stands at about three times that of Japan," Kingston pointed out.
Stephen Nagy, a senior associate professor of international relations at Tokyo's International Christian University, believes that the Japanese government will do everything in its power to portray any enhancement in the ships' capabilities as defensive in nature.
"The question of 'projection of power' is largely a matter of semantics at this point, but the fact is that if they go ahead then the vessels will be able to launch fighter aircraft," said Nagy, who is also a fellow of the Asia Pacific Foundation of Canada. "So they are walking a very fine line between defensive and offensive power."
And that ambiguity is "going to create further tensions in the region, most notably with China," Nagy told DW.
A look back at Asia in 2017
The year 2017 saw China's President Xi Jinping tightening his grip over power, North Korea's Kim Jong Un's provocative missile tests, and a Rohingya refugee crisis. Here are the most important developments from Asia.
Bye bye, TPP!
Three days after taking office, US President Donald Trump fulfilled his campaign promise by withdrawing his country from the massive Trans-Pacific Partnership free trade accord on January 23. The deal had been a cornerstone of Trump's predecessor Barack Obama's Asia-Pacific strategy, which foresaw closer US trade and investment ties with the region.
Image: picture alliance/Newscom/R. Sachs
'Rocketman' vs 'mentally deranged'
Shortly after Trump took office, North Korea conducted its first missile test for the year in mid-February. Overall, the North fired over 20 missiles, including three intercontinental ones, and conducted its sixth nuclear test in 2017. A war of words also raged between Trump and Kim, with the US leader at one point threatening to "totally destroy" North Korea.
Image: picture-alliance/AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon
A murder in Kuala Lumpur
In February, Kim Jong Nam, Kim Jong Un's half-brother, was killed under mysterious circumstances, when nerve agent VX was wiped on his face. Two women from Indonesia and Vietnam face murder charges for allegedly carrying out the hit. They say they were tricked into believing they were taking part in a prank for reality television. The North Korean leadership is suspected to be behind the murder.
Image: picture-alliance/AP Photo/S. Kambayashi
From palace to prison in South Korea
Disgraced former President Park Geun-hye was arrested in February and charged with corruption, extortion and abuse of office. Park, South Korea's first woman president, was impeached by parliament in December 2016 after months of mass protests over accusations of graft and influence-peddling. South Korea's constitutional court upheld the decision in March, removing her from office.
Image: Getty Images/J. Heon-Kyun
... and a new start in Seoul
Moon Jae-in succeeded the deposed Park as president of South Korea, winning the elections in May by a large margin. Moon, a former human rights lawyer, takes a conciliatory approach toward North Korea and is in favor of dialogue to resolve the Korean conflict. At the same time, he supports international sanctions against the reclusive regime in Pyongyang.
Image: Reuters/Kim Hong-Ji
Mysterious death
After a year and a half in captivity in North Korea, Otto Warmbier returned to the US in June. He was in a bad physical condition and died shortly after his return. It is unclear what happened to the US student in North Korea. President Trump accused Pyongyang of torturing him. North Korean authorities had sentenced Warmbier to 15 years of hard labor for attempting to steal a propaganda poster.
On July 13, Chinese Nobel Peace Prize laureate Liu Xiaobo died of liver cancer at the age of 61. A few weeks prior to his death, Liu had been moved from prison to a hospital. Despite Liu's serious ailment, Chinese authorities did not allow him and his wife Liu Xia to travel abroad for treatment. Liu was detained in 2009 for "undermining state power."
Image: picture-alliance/AP
Rohingya exodus
Following an attack by Rohingya militants on Myanmar troops at the end of August, the Southeast Asian country's military launched a massive crackdown on the rebels. The subsequent violence triggered an exodus of Rohingya Muslims in Rakhine state. More than 620,000 Rohingyas have fled to neighboring Bangladesh since August.
Image: Reuters/Z. Bensemra
Nuclear test number 6
On September 3, North Korea conducted its most powerful nuclear test to date. The North's government claimed it was a hydrogen bomb that could be launched with an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) capable of reaching the US. The international community swiftly condemned the test, with the United Nations imposing more sanctions on the North Korean regime.
Image: Reuters/KCNA
A more powerful Xi
China held the Communist Party congress in October, which turned out to be a great show of power by President Xi Jinping. The congress confirmed Xi's place as China's leader for another five years, with the possibility of another term beyond 2022. The year 2017 also saw Xi consolidating his stature as a global leader.
Image: Getty Images/W.Zhao
The battle for Marawi
The five-month long war in the southern city of Marawi between "Islamic State"-linked militants and the Philippine army ended in October, with the country's defense minister declaring victory over Islamists. The conflict claimed more than 1,000 lives and displaced around half a million people.
