Japan Press Weekly

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2012 July 11 - 17 [POLITICS]

PM wants to discuss on right of collective self-defense

Prime Minister Noda Yoshihiko expressed his intention to aggressively conduct discussions on the exercise of the right to collective self-defense in a House of Representatives Budget Committee meeting on July 12.

At present, the government interpretation is that exercising the collective self-defense right is prohibited under the Japanese Constitution.

Commenting on this, the prime minister said, “I will respect the current interpretation. However, discussion on the collective defense right should be held at various levels in the Diet.”

Regarding the idea of creating a law to allow the permanent dispatch of the Japanese Self-Defense Forces abroad, Noda said, “We need to take action to exchange views concerning the matter.”

At the July 9 House Budget Committee meeting, Noda took a positive attitude toward a revision of the government’s interpretation on the collective self-defense right. The revision was proposed by a subcommittee of the government council on national strategy and policy.