Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe yesterday promised he would keep his nation out of war following the introduction of contentious new security legislation, a day after China announced it is building its second aircraft carrier.
In September last year, parliament in the officially pacifist nation passed security bills opening the door for Japanese troops to engage in combat overseas for the first time since the end of World War II.
The legislation was met with strong public resistance at home, with tens of thousands taking part in street protests, while also fueling anger in China and on the Korean Peninsula.
Critics have warned that the changes could see Japanese troops dragged into far-flung foreign conflicts similar to the US-led invasions of Iraq and Afghanistan.
“Under the new legislation for peace and security, we will prevent war by taking all possible preparations for any circumstances,” Abe said in a New Year’s message. “We have successfully built a foundation for handing down a peaceful Japan to the generations of our children and grandchildren.”
Abe’s message came a day after China announced it was building its second aircraft carrier, which is to have a displacement of 50,000 tonnes and carry China’s J-15 aircraft, along with other planes.
Beijing has rapidly expanded its military in the past few years, rattling its neighbors and attracting the attention of the US, which is making a foreign policy “pivot” toward Asia.
Relations between Japan and China have often been strained over competing claims over the Diaoyutai Islands (釣魚台), known as the Senkaku Islands in Japan.
Last month, a Chinese coast guard vessel, which appeared to be armed with several cannons, entered what Tokyo regards as its territorial waters near the disputed islands, which are also claimed by Taiwan.
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