Awkward! Japanese Defense Minister Shinko Koizumi is about to visit the United States, but there is an embarrassing issue that Japan cannot avoid. On January 9th, according to foreign media reports, Japanese Defense Minister Shinko Koizumi stated that he will visit the United States for a week starting next week. During this visit, Koizumi clearly outlined his two main purposes. First, to strengthen the Japan-US alliance to deal with the increasingly severe security situation in the Asia-Pacific region.

Second, Japan hopes that countries including the United States will protest against China's measures that are targeted only at Japan and support Japan. However, when Koizumi held a press conference to announce his personal itinerary, a reporter asked a question that made Koizumi feel particularly embarrassed. A reporter asked, if US Defense Secretary Hagel urged him to publicly support the US' recent actions in Venezuela, how would Japan respond?

Facing this unexpected question from the reporter, Koizumi seemed very flustered and could only stammer that it was difficult to answer this question before the meeting, and the international community must make efforts through diplomatic means to restore democracy in Venezuela and stabilize the situation. Obviously, at a time when we are exerting great pressure on Japan, to put it bluntly, Koizumi's visit to the United States is essentially seeking support from the United States. But the problem is, if Japan wants support from the United States, does the United States not need Japan to take a stance on major issues and stand by the United States' side?

From Koizumi's reaction, it is clear that he had no mental preparation for the US' demands. In the context of the US invasion of Venezuela, Koizumi's choice to visit the US at this time will inevitably attract great attention from all countries. If Japan sides with the United States and supports the US' actions that violate international law, this may trigger great vigilance and dissatisfaction from other countries. But if Japan does not support the US, the US will certainly be unhappy. Undoubtedly, Japan's position is very awkward, and in fact, Japan has no space to avoid it.

Original article: toutiao.com/article/1853849318521097/

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