Role of Japan's SDF Expanding in Severe Security Environment
Tokyo, June 30 (Jiji Press)--The role of Japan's Self-Defense Forces has been expanding since it was formed 70 years ago as the security environment surrounding the country has become increasingly severe.
The SDF was established on July 1, 1954, against the backdrop of the Korean War. It initially relied on the United States for supply of equipment.
A turning point for the SDF came in 1976, when Japan formulated the defense program outline for the first time.
In light of the detente between the United States and the Soviet Union, the program introduced the basic defense force concept, which calls for Japan's self-reliant response to limited and small-scale aggression and seeks to build a certain level of defense capabilities in peacetime.
In the 1990s, when the Cold War ended, overseas dispatches of SDF troops became full-scale as part of Japan's international contribution. SDF minesweepers were sent to the Persian Gulf in 1991 after the end of the Gulf War.
In 1992, the law on Japan's cooperation with U.N. peacekeeping missions came into effect. In 2001, the law on the fight against terrorism was enacted, leading the SDF to carry out refueling activities in the Indian Ocean.
Another turning point was a decision made in July 2014 by the cabinet of then Prime Minister Shinzo Abe to allow the country to partially exercise the right to collective self-defense. The move enabled Japan to exercise the right to collective self-defense even without a direct attack on Japan if another country with a close relationship with Japan is attacked and Japan's existence is threatened as a result.
In 2015, security-related laws were enacted, adding new duties such as protection of U.S. weapons to the SDF. The SDF has increasingly taken part in multilateral exercises. "We are now able to contribute more actively to the peace and stability of the international community," Defense Minister Minoru Kihara said at a press conference last week.
In 2022, current Prime Minister Fumio Kishida revised the country's national security strategy and decided to allow Japan to possess counterattack capabilities. He significantly increased defense spending to about 43 trillion yen over five years from fiscal 2023 to drastically strengthen the country's defense capabilities.
The government is also promoting the development of defense capabilities in the remote southwestern region in view of a possible conflict in the Taiwan Strait. The SDF will create a joint operations command next spring to oversee the integrated operation of the Ground, Maritime and Air SDFs in an effort to strengthen command and control cooperation with the U.S. military.
China has strengthened its military activities in the East China Sea and South China Sea and around Taiwan. North Korea continues to develop nuclear weapons and missiles. Russia is expanding joint military activities with China in areas around Japan, and is strengthening its relations with North Korea. "Now there is a real threat," a senior Japanese Defense Ministry official said.
"It is an important mission to continue efforts to prevent war," Gen. Yoshihide Yoshida, chief of staff at the SDF's Joint Staff, said, stressing the need to improve Japan's defense capabilities.
Still, concerns remain over Japan's efforts to strengthen its defense capabilities. "We will stick to an exclusively defense-oriented policy and will not become a military power that poses a threat to other countries," a Japanese government official said.
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