Japan's remilitarization alarms scholars over regional security risks

Japan's accelerating military buildup signals a shift from a defensive to an offensive posture, a change that could reshape regional security, according to Professor Warwick Powell.

Powell, an adjunct professor at Queensland University of Technology in Australia, is among a growing number of Japanese and overseas academics warning that Japan has abandoned its postwar defense stance and is repositioning itself as a power projector across the region and beyond.

He voiced his concerns when commenting on Japan's newly released annual defense white paper in an interview with China Global Television Network (CGTN).

The white paper, presented to the Japanese cabinet on Tuesday by Defense Minister Shinjiro Koizumi, retained the wording of the 2025 edition, claiming that the international community is facing its greatest challenge since World War II and has entered a "new era of crisis."

The document is widely seen as an effort to pave the way for revising Japan's three key security documents by the end of this year and accelerating its military buildup. It is considered part of a broader pattern under the current administration led by Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi, which has already increased defense spending, lifted restrictions on weapons exports, and launched its first post-WWII centralized intelligence infrastructure.

Powell said the document's release is in line with Japan's most significant and dangerous shift in defense and security policy in decades, which could have serious ramifications for the region and beyond. The scholar expressed particular concern over Japan's shift from a defensive to an offensive military posture.

"The Japanese administration has, in a sense, put the final touches on a decades-plus-long effort by various political forces domestically as well as supporters around the world to salami-slice in the first instance the defense-oriented constitutional arrangements and the constraints and limitations, but ultimately with a view to taking off the mask and rejuvenating a militarized Japan in the name of defense and domestic prosperity," said Powell.

"When you have the second largest economy in the region, essentially putting on the military uniform once again, not only in the name of defense, but clearly with a view to projecting power across the region and perhaps even across the world -- that's a concern to people everywhere," Powell added.

Japan's remilitarization alarms scholars over regional security risks

Relentless heatwaves, deepening drought and raging wildfires are straining Europe's freight transport, energy systems and agriculture this summer, driving up costs and threatening billions in economic losses.

Prolonged high temperatures and insufficient rainfall have caused major European rivers to recede to critical levels. On Wednesday, the water level at the bottleneck gauging station of Kaub on the Rhine River hit a new historic low, breaking the previous record set in 2018, with further declines expected in the coming days.

The Rhine serves as a vital artery for inland freight transport across Europe. Analysts cautioned that if drought conditions persist, supply chains in the chemical, steel, and mineral oil sectors could face significant disruptions, potentially forcing some manufacturers to scale back production.

Meanwhile, freight capacity on sections of the Danube River in Austria and Hungary has also seen notable reductions.

Economists forecast that low water levels could inflict between one billion and two billion euros in economic losses on Germany in the third quarter alone.

The heatwave has placed a twin burden on Europe's energy infrastructure. On one hand, surging demand for cooling equipment has driven electricity consumption sharply higher. On the other, insufficient water resources and elevated river temperatures have constrained the operation of nuclear and hydropower plants, reducing overall energy supply capacity.

Tighter energy supply could further disrupt rail freight, steel production, and chemical manufacturing, while also adding to inflationary pressures.

The agricultural and livestock sectors are among those most directly hit by extreme heat. Persistent high temperatures have increased water requirements for crops and livestock, driving up costs for irrigation, feed, insurance, and disaster prevention.

In France, preliminary estimates suggest that this year's heat could reduce total agricultural output by 10 percent, potentially costing the country up to six billion euros in losses.

The economic toll is further magnified by wildfires ignited by the extreme conditions. According to data from the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe, wildfires have already scorched more than 434,000 hectares of land across Europe this year.

Heatwave, drought threaten billions in losses across Europe