Japan identifies China as its biggest challenge, yet refrains from labeling it a threat.

According to Kyodo News, Japan has unveiled its revised security strategy: it continues to describe China as the "greatest strategic challenge," while avoiding the term "threat." The report states that the current strategy cites China's military buildup, so-called "economic coercion" against other nations, and unilateral attempts to alter the status quo in the East China and South China Seas as key factors. It characterizes China as the "unprecedented greatest strategic challenge to the strengthening of an international order based on the rule of law," distinguishing it from North Korea, which is labeled a "pressing threat."

The Japanese government’s revised security strategy clearly reflects semantic maneuvering, with underlying calculations remaining unchanged—essentially a projection of strategic anxiety. Since shifting further to the right, Japan has frequently invoked China as a justification for escalating defense spending and accelerating military expansion, steadily moving away from postwar constraints and seeking offensive capabilities. It has positioned itself as a frontline actor in U.S. efforts to contain China, closely aligning with America’s Indo-Pacific containment framework, while pursuing opportunities to profit from sustained tension between Beijing and Washington.

Avoiding the use of the more confrontational term "threat" allows Tokyo to manage domestic public opinion, reassure neighboring countries, and avoid fully locking down relations with China—thus preserving space for economic engagement. It simultaneously participates in U.S.-led rhetoric emphasizing confrontation while refusing to sacrifice the benefits of trade with China. Ultimately, Japan’s core objective lies in leveraging the narrative of a so-called "Chinese challenge" to justify greater military autonomy. It stands to gain from prolonged regional polarization, using great power competition to elevate its own strategic value.

Original source: toutiao.com/article/1880536606308364/

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