Japan Press Weekly

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2008 January 23 - 29 [POLITICS]

Japan’s policy of banning arms exports must be maintained

Akahata editorial (excerpts)

Business circles have been pushing the government to remove the Three Principles on Arms Exports that effectively ban arms exports by Japan based on the pacifist Constitution.

Although the government in 2004 excluded the Japan-U.S. joint development and production of missile defense systems from the restriction, the Three Principles still prohibit Japan-produced weapons from being exported overseas. Business circles are calling for the government policy to be relaxed with the aim of making enormous profits by selling weapons in the world market. Japan should not be allowed to turn into a “merchant of death” country promoting wars and conflicts throughout the world.

Business circles’ profit-first policy

In the December 25 House of Councilors Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee meeting, Japan Business Federation (Nippon Keidanren) Defense Production Committee Acting Chair Kato Kazuyuki openly called on the government to review the Three Principles on Arms Exports so that Japan can take part in projects to jointly develop weapons with countries other than the U.S. and sell its products and technologies overseas.

The Fukuda Cabinet’s stance on this issue should not be overlooked. Defense Minister Ishiba Shigeru, while stating, “It is outrageous to promote conflicts” by selling arms, is pursuing arms exports by stating that it is necessary for the Self-Defense Forces to share arms with other countries and that Japan’s weapons are expensive because only the SDF buys them.

In a Lower House Special Committee meeting on November 1, Ishiba stated, “I would like for the Diet to have discussions” on a review of the Three Principles. Foreign Minister Komura Masahiko in an Upper House Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee meeting on December 27 said, “Discussions on a flexible interpretation of the Three Principles does not pose a problem.”

In its “Unified View on Arms Exports” issued on February 27, 1976, the government stated, “As a peace-loving nation, Japan will refrain from exporting arms to any country in order to avoid the escalation of international conflict.” Remarks by Ishiba and Komura clearly go against this government statement.

The Three Principles were established on the basis of the bitter lessons from Japan’s past war of aggression that took the lives of 20 million people. It must not be altered for the military industry’s interests.

Japan’s diplomacy requires Three Principles

The United Nations finally began to make a full-fledged move to restrict the transfer of small arms, including handguns and machine guns. As the world’s only nation that has a policy of banning arms exports, Japan is qualified to play an active role in this field. A Foreign Ministry report, “Japan’s Disarmament and Non-Proliferation Policy 2006,” stated, “Since Japan neither exports arms nor has developed an export-oriented military industry, it can take the leadership [for peace] in the international arena.”

The Three Principles on Arms Exports must be maintained in order for Japan’s diplomacy to play a role.