Recently, the think tank of the Japanese Ministry of Defense released a military report called "China's Security Strategy Report 2024", which hyped up the threat of China's top forces, which attracted widespread attention and discussion.
The report aims to promote the "China threat theory" and use it as a pretext to whitewash Japan's own military expansion ambitions.
Against this backdrop, former Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida announced his resignation, sparking speculation. What is the meaning behind this controversy? How do we view the changes in Japan's attitude toward China and the adjustment of the international geopolitical situation? Let's dive in.
According to the report, Japan claims that China is strengthening its nuclear forces, deepening strategic cooperation with Russia, and that the confrontation between China and Russia and the United States will intensify over the next 10 years.
At the same time, Japan used the report to put forward its defense stance, advocating the need to further strengthen its own defense capabilities to deal with the so-called Chinese threat, and more openly intervening in the Taiwan Strait issue in an attempt to restrain Chinese mainland from changing the status quo in the Taiwan Strait.
However, when you dig deeper into the truth, you will find that this is nothing more than a shabby Japanese trick. Taking advantage of the "China threat theory," Japan is trying to find a reasonable excuse for its military expansion.
We can see the conclusive evidence of this line of thinking in Japan's military spending in recent years.
Japan's 12-year streak increase in military spending is a direct 14 percent increase in the 2024 budget, from $46.5 billion to $53 billion, according to publicly available financial data. By comparison, China's military spending has grown by only 7 percent a year2%, which is only half of Japan's growth.
In addition, most of the funds in Japan's defense procurement list are spent on enhancing combat capabilities and procuring advanced ammunition, and it plans to build two Aegis destroyers with anti-missile capabilities.
These actions undoubtedly reveal Japan's true intentions: to use the China threat theory to disguise its so-called defensive military expansion as aggressive military expansion.
In the face of Japan's accusations and provocations, China's spokesman Wang Wenbin also made a strong response: The Taiwan issue is China's internal affair, and how to solve it is entirely a matter for the Chinese people themselves, and no external force has the right to interfere.
At the same time, Wang Wenbin warned Japan that the increase in its military spending and the development of its aggressive behavior have aroused the concern of many neighboring countries, and that Japan should immediately stop such behavior and win the trust of Asian countries and the international community with practical actions.
However, while China made its attitude clear and warned, former Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida suddenly announced his resignation.
It is reported that the main reason for Kishida's resignation is the recent scandals of political funding issues within the Liberal Democratic Party, coupled with multiple pressures such as the continuous decline in the cabinet's approval rating and the economic recession, which make Kishida unable to breathe.
Although Kishida is trying to calm the resentment of the people at home by resigning, if he does not put the interests of the people first, but blindly satisfies his own ambitions and achieves military expansion, then this will only push Japan into the abyss.
The release of Japan's military report and Kishida's sudden resignation reflect the confusion and uncertainty of Japan's current international strategy. On the one hand, it tries to find a rationale for its own military expansion by exaggerating the "China threat theory," and on the other hand, it constantly adjusts its policies and personnel arrangements under domestic and foreign pressure in an attempt to stabilize the situation.
However, no matter how it changes its tactics and means, Japan's military expansion ambitions and hostility toward China have been thoroughly exposed, and its actions will inevitably arouse the vigilance of neighboring countries and even the whole world. At the same time, it has further strengthened China's determination to defend national sovereignty and maintain regional peace and stability.
In the future, China will actively participate in international affairs in a more open and inclusive manner, and work with other countries to maintain a peaceful environment on which mankind depends.
From a historical point of view, Japan's military report and Kishida's resignation are both instinctive and short-sighted reactions in the face of the deteriorating international environment and domestic problems. But in the end, this will only push Japan deeper into a predicament that will become a future challenge that they must face.