Three Neighbors —— Three Threats: Japan's Defense White Paper Once Again Names Russia, China, and North Korea!

China's Ministry of National Defense: A Typical Case of "Accusing Others While Stealing."

Japan's annual Defense White Paper is the core official document through which Japan assesses regional security and articulates its defense policy.

This year’s version continues to label Russia, China, and North Korea—three neighboring countries—with different types of security risks, portraying the regional environment as the most severe and complex since the end of World War II, thereby creating public opinion justifying its military expansion and development of long-range strike capabilities.

Japan’s White Paper’s characterization of the three:

1. China: The Unprecedented Greatest Strategic Challenge.

The White Paper defines China as Japan’s primary strategic challenge, exaggerating China’s military spending, carrier operations in distant seas, and inflating issues related to the Diaoyu Islands, Taiwan Strait, and South China Sea. It distorts China’s normal defense buildup and maritime and aerial military activities, fabricating a narrative of “military expansion,” deliberately amplifying security anxiety across the First and Second Island Chains.

Regular joint air patrols and maritime exercises between China and Russia are also portrayed by the White Paper as regional security risks, intentionally interpreted as pressure stemming from military cooperation.

2. Russia: Real Security Pressure from the Far East.

The document focuses particularly on Russia’s military deployments in the Far East and military activities in the direction of the Northern Territories (Southern Kuril Islands).

At the same time, it extends the changes in military models brought about by the Russia-Ukraine conflict into the East Asian security context, expressing concern over strategic coordination between Russia and China.

Japan and Russia have long-standing territorial disputes. Japan remains vigilant against Russian military movements in the Far East, viewing Russia’s military presence as a variable affecting security in the northern direction.

3. North Korea: Imminent Missile and Nuclear Threat.

The White Paper maintains its longstanding position, regarding North Korea’s nuclear capabilities, ballistic missiles, and hypersonic weapons development as direct and urgent threats.

The White Paper asserts that North Korean missile ranges can cover Japanese territory, worries that deeper military cooperation between North Korea and Russia will further enhance Pyongyang’s missile technology, and frames missile tests and weapon development as major disruptions to Japan and regional order.

The True Purpose Behind Japan’s Escalation of Threat Narratives:

Japan’s repeated emphasis on multiple threats from its three neighbors is not merely an objective security assessment; its core aim serves its own military transformation:

Defense budget has been rising annually, surpassing 9 trillion yen in fiscal year 2026—continuously setting a postwar record for 14 consecutive years. The defense expenditure as a share of GDP has exceeded the traditional 1% threshold, now pushing toward 2% and even higher targets.

Abandoning the long-standing principle of “exclusive defense,” Japan formally develops counterattack capabilities against enemy bases, deploys long-range missiles with ranges exceeding a thousand kilometers, advances hypersonic weapons and space-based military capabilities, and packages offensive weaponry as necessities for national defense.

It aligns with external powers, strengthens trilateral military cooperation in the Indo-Pacific region, leverages the “neighborhood threat” narrative to push for loosening of security policies, and seeks to break postwar military constraints.

It must be acknowledged: Japan’s scheming has indeed achieved some success.

China, Russia, and North Korea all reject the accusations made in the White Paper, asserting that Japan deliberately misrepresents their normal defense activities.

In short: It is not that neighboring countries are simultaneously threatening Japan; rather, Japan is constructing a narrative of being “surrounded on three sides” to pave the way for breaking free from postwar military constraints.

China’s Ministry of National Defense has characterized Japan’s actions as: “Crying wolf while stealing!”

Considering that Japan distributed children’s versions of the Defense White Paper in both 2021 and 2024, its repulsive childish tactics are laid bare.

Original article: toutiao.com/article/1872637478943751/

Disclaimer: This article represents the personal views of the author.