New Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida on Oct. 14 dissolved the lower house of parliament and announced that a general election is to be held on Sunday. The early dissolution of the House of Representatives set a new record as the shortest since World War II — it took place only 10 days after Kishida took office, and a mere 10 days after a new Cabinet was formed. Unless something unexpected happens, the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP), Japan’s largest political party, is expected to win the election and remain in power.
Japan is a multiparty democracy. It is ruled by the center-right LDP, and the biggest opposition party is the center-left Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan (CDP). Despite sitting on opposite ends of the political spectrum, the two major parties hold the same views and strongly agree on national security issues, such as supporting Taiwan’s security and opposing the Chinese threat.
On Oct. 11, Kishida told parliament that Taiwan is an important partner, and that Japan would seek to deepen bilateral relations and continue to pay close attention to the situation around Taiwan. He added that Japan and Taiwan share the same basic values, and that they maintain close economic relations and personnel exchanges.
That same day, CDP leader Yukio Edano told parliament that Taiwan is close to Japan not only geographically, but also in terms of economics, and that it is strategically important for Japan to secure maritime routes. Edano made it clear that he attaches great importance to peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait and that he opposes Chinese use of force to change the “status quo.”
These comments make it clear that Japan’s opposition parties are rational, and would support important government policies for the sake of national security and interests.
The rapid expansion of Chinese military power in the South China Sea and the frequent live-fire exercises conducted by the Chinese People’s Liberation Army near the Taiwan Strait have caused anxiety among Japan’s ruling and opposition parties. To guard against the military threat China poses, the Japanese government has continued to strengthen military preparations and promote national defense education for the general public.
Aside from releasing this year’s edition of the Defense of Japan annual white paper in July, the Japanese government in August published for the first time a children’s edition of the white paper to make it easier for the younger generation to understand the security environment around Japan, its national defense and the current state of China’s military development.
Moreover, to strengthen Japan’s defense capabilities, the LDP on Oct. 12 unveiled its manifesto before the House of Representatives, which includes a plan to double the nation’s defense expenditure.
According to the manifesto, the goal of the substantial increase in the defense budget is to exceed 2 percent of GDP. This would be equivalent to the proportion of the national defense budget that NATO requires of its member countries. It also means that the political tradition that Japan’s defense expenditure should account for 1 percent of GDP would be changed. The annual budget proposed by the Japanese Ministry of Defense for next year is about US$50 billion.
Although the Chinese military threat is less severe to Japan than it is to Taiwan, Japan’s ruling and opposition parties are all highly alert to issues concerning national security, and Tokyo is willing to allocate a large budget to strengthen its armed forces. This spirit of consensus between the ruling and opposition parties on defense actions is something that Taiwan should learn from.
Yao Chung-yuan is an adjunct university professor and former deputy director of the Ministry of National Defense’s Strategic Planning Department.
Translated by Lin Lee-kai
It is almost three years since Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) and Russian President Vladimir Putin declared a friendship with “no limits” — weeks before Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. Since then, they have retreated from such rhetorical enthusiasm. The “no limits” language was quickly dumped, probably at Beijing’s behest. When Putin visited China in May last year, he said that he and his counterpart were “as close as brothers.” Xi more coolly called the Russian president “a good friend and a good neighbor.” China has conspicuously not reciprocated Putin’s description of it as an ally. Yet the partnership
The ancient Chinese military strategist Sun Tzu (孫子) said “know yourself and know your enemy and you will win a hundred battles.” Applied in our times, Taiwanese should know themselves and know the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) so that Taiwan will win a hundred battles and hopefully, deter the CCP. Taiwanese receive information daily about the People’s Liberation Army’s (PLA) threat from the Ministry of National Defense and news sources. One area that needs better understanding is which forces would the People’s Republic of China (PRC) use to impose martial law and what would be the consequences for living under PRC
Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairman Eric Chu (朱立倫) said that he expects this year to be a year of “peace.” However, this is ironic given the actions of some KMT legislators and politicians. To push forward several amendments, they went against the principles of legislation such as substantive deliberation, and even tried to remove obstacles with violence during the third readings of the bills. Chu says that the KMT represents the public interest, accusing President William Lai (賴清德) and the Democratic Progressive Party of fighting against the opposition. After pushing through the amendments, the KMT caucus demanded that Legislative Speaker
Although former US secretary of state Mike Pompeo — known for being the most pro-Taiwan official to hold the post — is not in the second administration of US president-elect Donald Trump, he has maintained close ties with the former president and involved himself in think tank activities, giving him firsthand knowledge of the US’ national strategy. On Monday, Pompeo visited Taiwan for the fourth time, attending a Formosa Republican Association’s forum titled “Towards Permanent World Peace: The Shared Mission of the US and Taiwan.” At the event, he reaffirmed his belief in Taiwan’s democracy, liberty, human rights and independence, highlighting a
RSS