Abe builds up 'China threat' in support of bills
- By Cai Hong
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E-mail China Daily, August 4, 2015
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[By Jiao Haiyang/China.org.cn] |
In the midst of a huge public outcry in Japan, the two security bills that will enable Japan's Self-Defense Forces to participate in collective self-defense have now moved to the Upper House, having been approved by the Lower House on July 15.
The latest poll conducted by Nikkei and TV Tokyo shows that 57 percent of the respondents are against their passage during the current session of parliament, compared with only 26 percent in favor.
Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and his Liberal Democratic Party have been keen to sell a "China threat" to try and justify the need for the drastic change to the role of Japan's Self-Defense Forces.
At the Upper House hearing on Wednesday, Abe said Japan could conduct minesweeping operations in the South China Sea, an about-face that suggests his desire to expand collective self-defense into those waters, since he had previously told the Lower House, "It is possible to bypass the South China Sea."
He used to cite defense of US vessels should the need arise, as well as a minesweeping missions in the Strait of Hormuz, which is crucial for the supply of oil to Japan, as examples of the use of the right to collective self-defense.
The shift in scenario is an attempt by the Abe administration and the LDP lawmakers to emphasize the importance of enacting the controversial security bills during the current Diet session by positing a change in the security environment surrounding Japan due to China's rise.
Abe's cabinet approved this year's defense white paper, which painted a picture of serious security risks for Japan in an unstable region, and claimed China held accountable for the increase in threats.
In its 400-plus pages, the document devotes a significant portion to China's "high-handed" actions in the East China Sea and South China Sea. With Japan's Defense Minister Gen Nakatani claiming Japan needs to observe China closely.
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