As the Self-Defense Forces prepare to greet the 50th anniversary of their founding next month, the prime minister's advisory panel on security and defense is updating Japan's "national defense program outline."

The first revision of the outline in nine years is aimed at improving defense capabilities to deal with ballistic-missile threats and terrorism and at making more international contributions. At the same time, it should include a call to reduce the U.S. military presence concentrated on Okinawa through an overhaul of the Japan-U.S. security system as well as tackle the issue of collective self-defense.

To secure Japan's peace and security, diplomatic efforts must improve the security environment in Northeast Asia amid tensions across the Taiwan Strait and on the Korean Peninsula. As America reorganizes its global military presence, the crucial question in formulating Japan's defense program outline is how to strike a balance between the Japan-U.S. security alliance and multilateral diplomacy.

The Prime Minister's Office is taking the initiative in revising the outline. Last December, the Koizumi Cabinet made a landmark decision to introduce a missile-defense system and to overhaul national defense to deal with the spread of weapons of mass destruction (WMD), ballistic missiles and international terrorism. The decision reflects the fact that, more than 10 years after the Cold War ended, the possibility of direct aggression against Japan has decreased.

By December the government plans to compile a new medium-term national defense buildup program to replace the existing one -- which expires in fiscal 2005 -- to curtail defense expenditures. Toward that end, the Ground, Maritime and Air Self-Defense Forces will be scaled down. Preparatory to the compilation of the new medium-term program, a new defense program outline is being compiled to replace the one drafted in 1995.

At the first meeting of the advisory body in April, Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi said improvements in defense capabilities should be aimed at (1) dealing with new threats from the spread of WMD and international terrorism and (2) making positive contributions to peace and security of the international community.

To achieve these objectives, Koizumi said, new security policies should be formulated and a thorough review of defense capabilities undertaken. He added that the review should be made from a broad perspective, covering not just defense but also diplomacy and the economy.

The first defense-program outline was compiled in 1976. It was premised on the theory that Japan should maintain a minimum defense capability to prevent a "defense vacuum" from forming in the region and leading to instability. In those years, with the Cold War still on, there was a widespread perception that a military balance, including nuclear deterrence, made East-West military conflicts unlikely.

The second, and current, defense program outline, based on the same concept, took up the challenges of dealing with threats from WMD and international terrorism as well as promoting international cooperation for peace. In addition, the outline said efforts would be made to implement the Japan-U.S. security system smoothly and effectively in case an emergency affecting Japan's peace and security occurred in areas surrounding Japan.

At a 1996 summit, Japan and the United States signed a joint declaration on security. On the basis of the declaration, they established guidelines for bilateral defense cooperation. In 1999, the Japanese Diet enacted a legislative package for dealing with a military emergency in areas surrounding Japan, bolstering the Japan-U.S. security system.

At meetings of the advisory panel, some members argued that the "minimum defense capability" concept should be reconsidered, given the growing international demands for SDF deployment overseas. Others said efforts to deal with new threats, such as terrorism, should be balanced with those devised to cope with traditional Cold War-type threats concerning the Taiwan Strait and the divided Korean Peninsula. Still others said studies should be made on sharing defense burdens among allies.

Under the Bush administration, the U.S. military presence worldwide is being reorganized. Forces in South Korea, for example, will be cut by one-third by the end of 2005. It is unclear, though, how U.S. forces in the Asia-Pacific region overall, including Japan, will be reorganized.

In formulating the new defense program outline, Japan should call for a reduction of U.S. forces in the country. As developments in South Korea show, the military presence often touches off anti-U.S. sentiments. To maintain an effective Japan-U.S. security alliance, U.S. bases should be consolidated. Such a step would not weaken bilateral defense relations.

We can no longer evade the question over the right of collective self-defense. According to the government's interpretation of the Constitution, Japan has the right but cannot exercise it. This puts severe restrictions on national missile defense and SDF activities overseas.

Japan's security is not guaranteed by the SDF and the Japan-U.S. defense alliance alone. Just as important are diplomatic efforts to improve the security environment in Northeast Asia. Active bilateral and multilateral diplomacy should be pursued to reduce military tensions.

The six-nation talks on nuclear-arms development in North Korea, if successful, could mark a milestone in building a multilateral security framework in Northeast Asia. Formulating solid security strategies from medium- and long-term standpoints and an international perspective is one of Koizumi's responsibilities.

http://www.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/geted....o20040615kn.htm

Ogumo, Fermer la bouche svp. Vous continuez à parler de ce sujet. Vous allez remplir tout l'espace d'enchaînement.

I speak only two languages a.s. French is not one of them. I only recoginze the word mouth...

she just told you to shut your mouth and that you keep talking about the same subject.

btw AS. you forgot to conjugate the first verb 'Fermer' Should be with the -es ending. I'd nitpick more but whatever..

Ogumo: I do not agree with this at all. The SDF should be rearmed and readied but we should not take part in any overseas multilateral matter without the consent and approval of the United Nations.