Japan Press Weekly

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2008 October 1 - 7 [US FORCES]

DPJ also sees Japan-U.S. alliance as most important

“Needless to say, the principle of paramount importance is the maintenance and further development of the Japan-U.S. alliance.”

This is what Democratic Party of Japan President Ozawa Ichiro emphasized when he took the floor of the House of Representatives on October 1 to state his party’s basic policy on foreign relations and security.

The statement was very similar to the “diplomatic principles” set forth by Prime Minister Aso Taro in his policy speech on September 29. Aso made it clear that the Japan-U.S. alliance is always a “priority.” This shows that the DPJ’s foreign and security policy is little different from that of the LDP-Komei government led by Prime Minister Aso.

The two leaders seem to share the same view that the Japan-U.S. alliance is as important as the United Nations. In response to Aso’s “question” (in his policy speech) as to which is more important, the Japan-U.S. alliance or the United Nations, Ozawa emphatically said, “The Japan-U.S. alliance does not contradict a U.N.-centric policy.”

Both politicians did not refer to the fact that the Japan-U.S. military alliance treaty called the “security treaty” allows U.S. forces to use Japan as a stepping-stone for their military interventions in Iraq and Afghanistan, killing many innocent citizens of these countries. They should also know that the Japanese Self-Defense Forces deployed to Iraq and the Indian Ocean to implement its commitments as a U.S. ally are giving a helping hand to U.S. forces’ assault operations.

The “peaceful settlement of international disputes” and the “prohibition of the use or threat to use military forces” are rules for peace established in the U.N. Charter. The Japan-U.S. military alliance is in contravention of these rules.

The Ozawa statement covers up the realities of the Japan-U.S. military alliance.