Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi is "ripping the lid off" of Japan's stance as an ostensible peace state, fully unveiling the long-standing hawkish, right-wing views in Japanese politics, said a U.S. professor of history.
From sending a warship through the Taiwan Strait and expanding lethal arms exports to renewing offerings at the Yasukuni Shrine, Japan's recent moves are raising alarm across the region.
Alexis Dudden, professor of history at the University of Connecticut and visiting professor of Japanese studies at the National University of Singapore, emphasized that Takaichi is not the architect of Japan's rightward shift, but represents the culmination of its parts over time.
"Prime Minister Takaichi is opportunistic. She is known for a longstanding career of being a hawk -- right-wing beliefs about history. So, more than anything, her premiership is really just ripping the lid off of what's been there. And we certainly saw this with Prime Minister Abe. His chosen target was Korea more than China -- maybe to test the waters, as it were. But what I also see, and I think is important to consider, is the state of Japan within -- not so much Japan versus China, but Japan versus Japan. Japan's economy looks great if you are an arms exporter. Mitsubishi Electric is thrilled by this news," said Dudden.
She warned that by stoking the "China threat" narrative while expanding arms production, Japan is losing its postwar identity as a "peace state" -- a course that will not only bring disaster to its neighbors but will also endanger Japan's own development.
"However, even with really low unemployment within Japan, there is something called the 'precariat.' Forty percent since the early 2000s have been precariously employed. Does this new manufacturing drive -- if we leave it at that, leave the arms part off, which I know is impossible -- but if we look at this, the question to me as a historian in several years is: Where are Mitsubishi, Toshiba, Toyota? Where are they going to build the factories to build these munitions? How will it change Japan within? In addition, we have the other rhetoric, as you rightly say, on high. Fear-mongering -- make China the enemy, focus on China. That's to Japan's detriment. It also just doesn't help regional relations," she said.
"It's also where the long-standing history issues come into play. For all intents and purposes, Japan adhering to Article Nine of its constitution should be the leader it has been in many respects since 1945 -- Not waging war outside its boundaries. Defensive purposes, fine. But it's lost its nomenclature as a 'peace state' by making this move. And it's deeply unfortunate for the many Japanese, as you also say, who don't want this. And it's a leadership decision to do it now, and it's under Takaichi's name," said Dudden.
Japan's rightward march rips off its 'peace state' mask: scholar
