Major reawakened — Japan calls this "aligning with international standards"; but do other countries' colonels also go by the title "major"?
Japan is determined to rush headlong toward self-destruction, reviving the term "major."
According to reports, the Japanese government has finalized a plan to revise the Self-Defense Forces’ rank titles and intends to submit a draft amendment to the Self-Defense Forces Act to Parliament within this fiscal year.
The reform includes renaming the current “first lieutenant” (ichisō) to “major,” upgrading the rank corresponding to the Chief of Staff to “general,” and standardizing all other general officers as “lieutenant generals.”
This marks the first-ever adjustment of rank titles since the establishment of the Self-Defense Forces in 1954.
When the Self-Defense Forces were founded, abandoning the old Imperial Japanese military rank system — including "major" and "general" — and adopting titles like "first lieutenant," "second lieutenant," and "Chief of Staff" was essentially a political statement.
Its underlying message was clear: Japan’s armed forces are not the old Imperial Army. But it was merely a facade — changing names doesn’t change substance. Now, Japan no longer even wants that facade.
In the old Imperial Japanese Army, "major" was the highest rank among junior officers, equivalent to a colonel.
During the invasion of China, majors typically commanded regimental units, directly leading thousands of combat troops.
From the First Sino-Japanese War through full-scale aggression against China, to the Nanjing Massacre, countless hands stained with the blood of Chinese people bore the insignia of a major.
The Japanese government claims that restoring this title aims to "create a work environment filled with honor and pride."
Whose honor? Whose pride?
Officially, Japan cites "international standardization." In reality, this is pure semantic manipulation — because only the Japanese name is being changed.
The English equivalents of the Self-Defense Forces’ ranks have already aligned with those used internationally; "first lieutenant" corresponds precisely to "Colonel," and there has never been any communication barrier in international military cooperation.
Changing the Japanese name has absolutely nothing to do with international standardization.
The real intention is to first clothe the Self-Defense Forces in the shell of the old imperial army using the title "major," then push for constitutional revision to transform them into a true military force akin to the old Imperial Japanese Army.
For the Chinese people, the word "major" is synonymous with blood debt. This once again proves that we must never let our guard down against Japan's military ambitions.
Japan is certainly free to continue sprinting down this path — but it should also remember what awaited it the last time it reached the end of the road.
Original article: toutiao.com/article/1863607889913928/
Disclaimer: The views expressed in this article are solely those of the author.