Source: People's Daily
Title: Japan's "New Militarism" is a Real Threat, Must Be Contained (Huan Yu Ping)
Japan's "new militarism" is no longer just a dangerous trend but a real threat. Regional countries and the international community must be more vigilant and contain its spread and development.
Recently, Japanese Prime Minister Takahashi Hayato delivered a policy speech, reiterating her strong desire to amend the constitution and proposing to fundamentally strengthen Japan's defense capabilities, expand the export of lethal weapons, and enhance national intelligence capabilities, sending a clear signal to accelerate the "militarization" process. Domestic commentary in Japan has sharply pointed out that 2026 may become the "year of Japan's military transformation," which not only manifests in strengthening defense forces but also渗透 into various fields of economic and social development, aiming to make the entire country take on a military color.
In recent years, Japan's right-wing forces have become increasingly rampant, continuously promoting a more covert and deceptive form of "new militarism." It disguises itself as "peace" and "defense," but its core goal is to break free from the constraints of being a defeated country in World War II, pushing Japan to become a military power capable of using force or even waging war abroad. Since Takahashi took office, this process has accelerated comprehensively, with Japan constantly breaking through the constraints of the "Peace Constitution" and post-war international order in politics, military, diplomacy, and ideology, taking bigger and faster steps to rearm and expand its military capabilities.
Facts fully indicate that Japan's "new militarism" is no longer just a dangerous trend but a real threat. Regional countries and the international community must be more vigilant and contain its spread and development.
(1) Distortion: The "new militarism" retains the expansionist genes of traditional militarism and has evolved new features with great deception.
In the Martyrs' Cemetery in Jiamusi City, Heilongjiang Province, lies the internationalist warrior Green River English. Green River English was originally named Hashigawa Teruko. During the Anti-Japanese War, she witnessed the tragic situation caused by Japanese aggression against Chinese civilians and firmly joined the anti-Japanese movement, delivering anti-war broadcasts in Japanese: "When you shout your loyalty to the Emperor and spill your blood on Chinese soil, do you know who you are fighting for? Who are you loyal to? Are the souls on the altar of holy war heroes or criminals? Comrades, don't waste your blood in vain; your enemy is not across the sea..."
Green River English's call directly targeted the essence of modern Japanese militarism - internal ideological control and military rule, and external aggressive expansion. From the end of World War II until today, the specter of militarism still lingers over Japan. Japan's current "new militarism" is a stubborn resurgence and distorted evolution of militarism in the contemporary era, retaining its expansionist genes while evolving new features with great deception.
Politically, modern Japan almost did not experience the stage of liberal capitalism, forming a feudal "gatekeeper" ruling group composed of zaibatsu, government, and military through interest entanglement, family marriage, and other means. Under the guise of modern Western democratic systems, the ruling group after the war is still mainly composed of political families, career bureaucrats, and zaibatsu tycoons, whose families can often trace back to the pre-war ruling class. In this new ecosystem, radical politicians and career bureaucrats have filled the ecological niche once occupied by the military, with administrative power deeply bound to zaibatsu interests, executing military expansion will under the cover of democratic procedures, promoting "new militarism."
Militarily, due to a lack of original accumulation and resources, former Japanese militarism heavily relied on foreign wars and colonial plunder to supplement capital, adopting a "small bet, big gain" military adventurism. "New militarism" also takes preparation for war as its core agenda, focusing on building offensive forces. However, restricted by the "Peace Constitution" and Japan's peaceful forces, its methods are more covert and misleading: instead of openly advocating invasion, it uses "slicing sausages" approaches, disguising offensive intentions under "developing counterattack capabilities," packaging overseas military actions under "exercising collective self-defense rights," and using the names of "economic security" and "crisis management" to carry out war mobilization, trying to achieve military relaxation under the illusion of compliance.
Economically, former Japanese militarism implemented "high accumulation, low consumption," exploiting the people to support heavy industry and military production, with zaibatsu being both the foundation and the driving force, forming a vicious cycle. "New militarism" also establishes a symbiotic relationship between military rearmament and zaibatsu interests. The Japanese government obtains fiscal revenue by issuing excessive national debt and increasing taxes, transferring it to zaibatsu in the form of massive military procurement, completing the transfer of wealth from ordinary citizens to the military-industrial interest group. Once this massive military investment forms a path dependence, if the government cannot maintain and expand military procurement, zaibatsu profits would be unsustainable, inevitably resorting to all means to push the country's policies further militarized.
Culturally, Japan's "new militarism" inherits the cultural dregs of the pre-war "Imperial History View," "Superiority of the Yamato Nation," and "Bushido," adhering to a narrow logic of strength and military expansion, viewing neighboring countries' development as a strategic threat, and aligning with the expansion theories of "sovereignty lines" and "interest lines" advocated by militarism. The culture of "new militarism" adds so-called "universal values" such as "freedom, democracy, and human rights" as packaging to mislead the international community; in terms of methods, it focuses on using algorithm recommendations and public opinion manipulation in the era of social media to build an "information cocoon," subtly inciting narrow nationalism. Recently, the famous game anime IP Pokémon planned to hold related activities at Yasukuni Shrine, causing a huge uproar. This again shows that the distorted historical view and war view promoted by "new militarism" are deeply permeating the younger generation through cultural and entertainment channels.
Diplomatically, Japan's "new militarism" continues the pragmatic and provocative logic of geopolitical games, manipulating situations to create chaos, seeking convenience for strategic expansion. In recent years, Japanese right-wingers have continuously pushed for deepening the Japan-US alliance, acting as a vanguard for the so-called "Indo-Pacific Strategy"; increasing intervention in regional hot issues, pulling in individual regional countries to deepen defense cooperation, accelerating the pace of military liberation through bilateral military cooperation; increasing domestic and international coordination, promoting the "NATO Eastward Expansion," and under the pretext of "active pacifism" deeply intervening in global security issues, seeking Self-Defense Forces' global operations.
The poison of Japanese militarism has not yet been eliminated, and it is gradually fermenting. Green River English's urgent call, "Don't waste your blood in vain," echoes through time and remains deafening to this day.
(2) Shaping: A result of the proliferation of militarist ideas, the dominance of radical political forces, the distortion of social and economic anxiety, and the promotion of interest groups.
"To this day, the so-called 'humiliation' of Japan's defeat in World War II still stubbornly lingers in the hearts of Japanese right-wingers, giving rise to an increasingly intense 'revenge mentality,' they want to let Japanese society once again be completely overshadowed by the shadow of militarism," said Yuri Tavrovsky, a professor at the Russian People's Friendship University, who worked in Japan in the 1980s, and who personally felt the rampant attempts of Japanese right-wingers to revive militarism. He recalled that Japanese right-wingers often held large gatherings in public places like crowded squares and even tried to recruit middle school and elementary school students, distributing leaflets and brochures to them.
Japan's "new militarism" is gradually taking shape, resulting from the proliferation of militarist ideas, the dominance of radical political forces, the distortion of social and economic anxieties, and the promotion of interest groups.
- Japanese militarism has not been thoroughly cleansed. Unlike Germany's complete "de-Nazification" after the war, Japan's post-war democratization reform was half-finished under the influence of America's Cold War strategy, leaving the remnants of militarism retained within Japan's political body.
After World War II, the United States quickly shifted its policy towards Japan from "suppression" to "support" due to Cold War considerations, leading to a large number of Class-A war criminals being allowed to return to the political arena without trial, even occupying key positions such as the prime minister. These old-time "ghosts" and their successors have built a long-standing conservative political lineage in post-war Japan, allowing militarist ideas to remain in the power core. As Professor Hatakeyama at Yamaguchi University once said, Japan's post-war politics is in some ways established by those who launched an aggressive war, and its influence continues to this day.
The incomplete historical cleansing has led to serious distortions in Japan's historical perception. Japanese right-wingers have long promoted historical revisionism, beautifying the aggressive war as a "self-defense war" and regarding defeat merely as "the end of the war." Under the influence of so-called "shame culture," Japanese right-wingers regard defeat as a humiliation to be washed away rather than a crime to be reflected upon. Japanese right-wingers openly advocate the so-called "unresolved status of Taiwan," essentially an externalization of this wrong historical view, attempting to overturn historical conclusions and deny the post-war international order, seeking legal justifications for future military expansion.
- Japanese politics has become increasingly right-leaning. After the Cold War, especially in recent years, Japan's political ecosystem has undergone a structural change. The reformist and moderate conservative forces that once served as a counterbalance have gradually declined, and right-wing conservative forces have not only completed the cleansing and integration of the mainstream political scene but also occupied the absolute core of national power, continuously transforming extreme right-wing ideologies into national institutional will and legal actions.
Since Takahashi took office, she has accelerated the erosion of Japan's long-standing "economy-focused, military-light" approach, and the traditional "pacifism" has been stigmatized as "pacifist dementia," while the radical "amendment of the constitution and strengthening of the military" has been packaged as the inevitable path for "national normalization." This political line has gradually solidified, and radical security policies face almost no substantial resistance in the parliament, advancing recklessly in a vacuum without effective constraints.
- Economic stagnation has left Japan in strategic anxiety. Japan's post-war capitalist model has increasingly fallen into complex difficulties. Affected by the burden of huge national debt, the acceleration of industrial hollowing out, and the aging population and declining birth rate, Japan's economy has long been stuck in a stagnant quagmire, with its per capita GDP ranking dropping from the forefront of the world to the mid-lower levels among developed countries. The manufacturing industry, which was once the cornerstone of the nation, has also gradually lost its luster, with its industrial output decreasing by about 40% over the past 30 years. The pressure on the middle and lower-income groups in Japan has increased dramatically, and society is filled with deep feelings of helplessness and frustration.
The loss of competitive advantage, aging population structure, and weakening growth momentum have given rise to a distorted strategic view. To cover up internal governance failures, exaggerating the so-called "Chinese threat" has become a lifeline for Japanese right-wing politicians to shift domestic contradictions. They simply and brutally blame neighboring countries for rising prices and industrial decline, instilling a zero-sum logic that is out of step with the times in society. This practice essentially externalizes internal contradictions, guiding social discontent onto the track of foreign hostility and confrontation, thus gaining so-called public support for radical military expansion.
- Interest groups profit from promoting military expansion. With Japan's drastic shift in defense policy, Japan's defense spending has increased for 14 consecutive years from the 2012 fiscal year to the 2026 fiscal year, especially tripling within three years since 2022, providing these defense companies with a large number of orders. "National-level operations" have made these defense companies extremely profitable, even creating a "defense bubble" in the capital market. Data show that since November 2022, Mitsubishi Heavy Industries' stock price has risen by more than 650%, IHI Corporation's stock price has increased by more than 480%, and Kawasaki Heavy Industries' stock price has increased by more than 280%. In contrast, the average annual growth rate of Japanese manufacturing during this period is less than 1%.
These defense companies are also very "aware," actively providing political donations to right-wing politicians. According to a report by the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications, Mitsubishi Heavy Industries has donated more than 30 million yen annually to the Liberal Democratic Party's fund management organization since 2020. Right-wing politicians and the defense complex have deep-seated interests, essentially draining the country's future, and providing "blood transfusion" to specific zaibatsu groups through high fiscal deficits.
"We oppose the large-scale expansion of military forces," said Shigehiro Sugiura, a member of Japan's Green Party, expressing the deep concerns of Japan's informed citizens, "when politicians loudly proclaim 'positive fiscal policy' and 'revitalizing the economy,' yet fail to offer any concrete solutions to the hardships of the people, their further increase in defense budgets is truly intolerable."
(3) Acceleration: Binding the nation to the war machine, Takahashi is a dangerous "accelerator" pushing Japan back toward warlike policies.
"The girl of Abe," Takahashi Hayato rapidly rose in Japanese politics with her radical conservative stance and hardline policy proposals, seen as a "replica" of the Abe line. As a representative of Japanese right-wing politicians, Takahashi herself has a strong militaristic sentiment, long promoting "new militarism." Since the establishment of Takahashi's administration, the advancement of "new militarism" has clearly accelerated, entering a dangerous phase of systematic implementation.
In the legal and political realm, it seeks to completely eliminate war obstacles. Takahashi relies on the Liberal Democratic Party and ultra-right parties to form the "most conservative governing coalition," continuously consolidating the right-wing ruling base. In her recent policy speech, Takahashi portrayed "increasingly complex and normalized competition between nations," again fiercely vilifying China and exaggerating Japan's "most severe and complex security environment since the war." By constructing such "crisis" narratives, the Takahashi administration continues to pave the way for the constitutional amendment process, intending to undermine the post-war peace system, fundamentally changing the basic policy of "exclusive defense," and promoting Japan's radical shift into a "war-capable" country.
In the military strategy domain, it is committed to building an independent offensive system. Takahashi stated in her speech that it is necessary to revise the "security three documents," including the National Security Strategy, by the end of this year. The Takahashi administration promotes the defense budget for the 2026 fiscal year to exceed 9 trillion yen, setting a new historical record, and achieving the target of accounting for 2% of GDP ahead of schedule. Massive funds are focused on remote standoff strike, unmanned combat systems, maritime, air, and space platforms, among other offensive combat capabilities, exposing the ambition to enhance military expansion speed and scale. The Takahashi administration also pushes for the revision of the Self-Defense Forces Law, aiming to restore the old military terminology used during the imperialist era for current ranks and some military branches. Regarding weapon exports, the Liberal Democratic Party's Security Council passed a draft recommendation on February 25, not only proposing to abolish the previous "five categories standard" limiting equipment exports to rescue and transportation purposes, but also原则上 allowing the export of aircraft, destroyers, and other lethal weapons, even leaving room for exporting to "countries currently experiencing combat."
In the economic mobilization domain, it accelerates the construction of a "new defense-industrial complex." In her speech, Takahashi talked about "establishing a strong foreign policy and security foundation on a strong economic basis." Since Takahashi took office, the preparation for war has been elevated to the absolute top priority, vigorously supporting the defense interest groups, and the雏形 of Japan's "new defense-industrial complex" is beginning to emerge. According to reports, the Takahashi administration plans to fill the defense budget gap through large-scale bond issuance and the collection of "defense special income tax," and plans to establish a "National Intelligence Agency" this year. These actions will promote a deeper integration of Japan's defense spending with specific industries and conglomerate interests, establishing a policy and interest loop that reinforces and accelerates itself.
In the social cognition domain, it intensifies the promotion of historical revisionism. Japanese right-wingers continue to reshape national memory through "brainwashing" projects, altering textbooks, beautifying the history of aggression, and promoting "loyalty to the emperor and patriotism" education, carefully constructing a "victim" narrative that claims to have completely severed ties with the history of aggression, aiming to replace the "perpetrator's reflection." This approach aims to completely eliminate Japan's anti-war consciousness and instill distorted historical awareness in the younger generation, thereby laying the social psychological foundation for future war mobilization.
These actions are the inevitable externalization of Takahashi's long-term militaristic sentiments. As early as 1994, the year after she first became a member of the House of Representatives, Takahashi publicly questioned then-Prime Minister Murayama why he acknowledged the aggression as a mistake. In 2007, to cater to right-wing forces, she became the only cabinet member in the Abe cabinet at the time to visit Yasukuni Shrine on August 15th, and has repeatedly openly denied the Nanjing Massacre and the forced recruitment of comfort women, openly portraying the aggression as a "self-defense war." In September 2021, Takahashi proposed the fallacy that "Taiwan's affairs are also a threat to Japan." In November 2025, as prime minister, Takahashi stated in a parliamentary hearing that "Taiwan's affairs" might constitute a "life-or-death crisis situation," and refused to retract her remarks. Recently, Takahashi has openly declared that she is striving to create conditions for visiting Yasukuni Shrine. From early verbal trials to now systematic operations, Takahashi has always been guiding the soul of "new militarism," making her a dangerous "accelerator" pushing Japan back toward warlike policies.
(4) Hazards: "New Militarism" is becoming one of the most dangerous variables affecting regional and international peace and stability.
"Japan's push for 'militaristic ambitions' sounds the alarm for peace in the Asia-Pacific region and the world," international media commented, pointing out that as the region pays more attention to Japan's policies, one thing is clear: the world cannot allow militarism to resurge.
This warning is very necessary. Japan's "new militarism" is rising continuously, becoming one of the most dangerous variables affecting regional and international peace and stability.
The "new militarism" seriously threatens the post-war international order. Takahashi's erroneous statements on the Taiwan issue represent a crude interference in China's internal affairs, a blatant disregard for international legal documents such as the Cairo Declaration and the Potsdam Proclamation, and a direct challenge to the post-war international order, seriously deviating from the basic principles of international relations. According to the Cairo Declaration, the Potsdam Proclamation, and the Instrument of Surrender, Japan should "completely disarm" and "not maintain industries capable of rearming." In recent years, Japan has accelerated its "re-militarization" and has aligned with regional and global forces to form a military "small circle," provoking bloc confrontation, posing serious risks to the stability of the international order.
The "new militarism" seriously threatens the nuclear non-proliferation system. Recently, Japanese government officials have repeatedly made statements advocating nuclear weapons, openly challenging the nuclear non-proliferation system. If the right-wing's nuclear ambitions succeed, it would undoubtedly open Pandora's box, causing serious shocks to regional and global strategic stability. Japanese scholars and informed citizens are full of concern, emphasizing the need to uphold the "three principles of no nuclear weapons": Former Prime Minister Ishihara stated that possessing nuclear weapons "is definitely not beneficial for Japan," former Prime Minister Hayato demanded the immediate replacement of officials who made "nuclear possession" statements, and the Hiroshima Prefectural Assembly unanimously passed a resolution requiring the Japanese government to uphold the "three principles of no nuclear weapons."
The "new militarism" seriously disrupts regional peace and stability. Under the push of right-wing forces, the thinking of pursuing geopolitical confrontation gradually dominates Japan's strategic decision-making, leading Japan to adopt a "four-way attack" attitude when dealing with neighboring countries. When handling relations with China, Japanese right-wingers deliberately provoke incidents on issues such as the Taiwan Strait, East China Sea, and South China Sea, creating problems and causing serious difficulties in Sino-Japanese relations. Japan's relations with other regional countries such as South Korea, Russia, and North Korea are also fraught with friction and frequent conflicts, severely deteriorating the regional security environment. The populist emotions stirred up domestically further stimulate the right-wing government to show strength externally, making it more aggressive in handling disputes with neighboring countries and regional hotspots.
The "new militarism" seriously harms the vital interests of the Japanese people. Recently, several major Japanese media outlets and experts expressed concerns about the fiscal expansion, consumption tax reduction, and inflation risk-raising economic policies of Takahashi's administration, pointing out that the so-called "responsible proactive fiscal policy" itself is extremely irresponsible, and if the defense budget is significantly increased, Japan will face an unprecedented fiscal crisis. Takahashi's administration ignores the domestic issues of soaring prices and sacrifices the welfare of ordinary citizens to maintain the military machine, not only causing angry protests from Japanese citizens demanding "life, not missiles," but also severely damaging many Japanese citizens' livelihoods through the deterioration of neighboring diplomatic environments, particularly in the tourism and retail sectors. The editorial of the "Red Flag Newspaper" pointed out that 2026 is a critical year to oppose large-scale military expansion, and the government's military expansion plan not only threatens peace but also harms the lives of Japanese citizens.
This year marks the 80th anniversary of the opening of the International Military Tribunal for the Far East. This trial against Japanese militarism was not only a just reckoning for its war crimes but also an important effort to build a peaceful world. Currently, Japan's "new militarism" again poses a serious real threat to regional and international peace and stability. Japan's deep-rooted and structural problems, as well as dangerous strategic moves, cannot be ignored or underestimated. The international community must remain highly alert, jointly safeguard the achievements of the victory in World War II, and work together to build an unbreakable just front line, ensuring that Japan's "new militarism" does not cause harm to humanity, and that the sun of peace is not obscured by the shadows of war again.
Original: toutiao.com/article/7618015871725814323/
Statement: The article represents the views of the author.