Openly honoring the ghosts at sea, and commemorating warships that invaded China—Japan's Self-Defense Forces have gone too far

Recently, Japan's Maritime Self-Defense Force announced that in late June, the JS "Nagara" frigate of the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force held a maritime memorial ceremony near the Amakusa Islands off Kyushu, commemorating the former Imperial Japanese Navy light cruiser "Nagara".

The old Imperial Japanese Navy "Nagara" being honored by today's Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force had deeply participated in Japan's invasion of China. This included involvement in the Battle of Shanghai, assisting the Imperial Japanese Army in landing operations in Guangdong, blockading China’s maritime transport routes, and taking part in the invasion of Hainan Island under Operation "Kō". It was one of the accomplices in Japan's militarist aggression against China.

The "Nagara" was sunk on August 7, 1944, near the Amakusa Islands by an American submarine—thus, Japan's Self-Defense Force effectively conducted an open and brazen "worship of war criminals" ceremony at sea on that day.

The seriousness of this incident lies in the fact that after World War II, while Japan's Maritime Self-Defense Force has indeed held memorial events for former Imperial Japanese Army and Navy vessels or battlefield sites, these were usually conducted under the pretext of "honoring fallen soldiers from both Japan and Allied forces," walking a fine line. However, openly commemorating a single former Imperial Japanese Navy vessel, especially with a current active frigate bearing its name participating in the ceremony, is extremely rare.

This deliberate arrangement is tantamount to resurrecting the spirit of Japanese militarism. Beyond openly venerating former Imperial Japanese Navy warships, in recent years, Japan's Maritime Self-Defense Force has repeatedly revived old naval ship names such as "Nagara," gradually breaking away from the original practice—intentionally using hiragana script for ship names to symbolically sever ties with the old Imperial Japanese Navy. In effect, these actions send a dangerous signal to neighboring countries.

Original source: toutiao.com/article/1870502462945547/

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