TOKYO, Aug. 16 (Xinhua) -- Aug. 15 marks the 81st anniversary of Japan's unconditional surrender in World War II. On the day, Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi sent a ritual offering to the notorious war-linked Yasukuni Shrine, while making no mention of "remorse" in her first war memorial address.
Analysts believe Japan's ruling authorities are persistently pushing to accelerate military expansion and rearmament and promoting right-wing historical views and narratives of "regional threats," with increasingly evident characteristics of "neo-militarism." They warn that today's Japan bears a striking resemblance to the Japan that embarked on a path of aggressive war in the past; if left unchecked, this trajectory poses a serious threat to regional peace and stability, and the international community should remain highly vigilant.
NO SIGN OF REMORSE
On Saturday, Takaichi made a "tamagushi" ritual offering to the Yasukuni Shrine, a symbol of the country's militarism and wartime aggression, in her capacity as president of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP). Before attending the National Memorial Service for the War Dead, she turned toward the shrine across the road and bowed twice, clapped twice and bowed once from the parking area of Nippon Budokan hall, in an apparent act of Shinto worship.
Meanwhile, Defense Minister Shinjiro Koizumi and several other cabinet ministers showed up at the shrine earlier Saturday, marking the seventh consecutive year that sitting Japanese ministers have paid respects there on Aug. 15. LDP Secretary-General Shunichi Suzuki, other top ruling party executives, and a nonpartisan group of dozens of lawmakers also visited the shrine.
In her speech at the annual memorial held in Tokyo, Takaichi neither mentioned Japan's wars of aggression against its Asian neighbors nor expressed remorse or apology for the suffering they caused. She even altered a phrase traditionally used by previous prime ministers, changing "must never repeat the horrors of war" into "The horrors of war must never be repeated." Japanese media pointed out that the revised wording deliberately obscures the subject responsible for the war, thereby avoiding reflection on Japan's wartime aggression.
This is not the first time Takaichi has employed such rhetorical ambiguity. In speeches earlier this month at ceremonies commemorating the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, she merely stated that Japan "is adhering to the Three Non-Nuclear Principles," while remaining vague about whether her government would continue to uphold them. Some Japanese media criticized the ambiguity as evidence that the prime minister has failed to genuinely learn from history.
Takaichi has long been associated with controversial positions on historical issues. In 1994, she publicly questioned the Murayama government's apology and remorse over Japan's wartime aggression, arguing that a prime minister could not apologize on behalf of the Japanese people. In a television program in 2002, she described Japan's wartime actions as a "war for self-preservation and self-defense," drawing sharp criticism. She has also published articles on her official website endorsing the right-wing "Greater East Asia War" historical narrative and promoting the prewar Imperial Rescript on Education, a document widely associated with militarist ideology.
Takakage Fujita, secretary-general of the Association for Inheriting and Propagating the Murayama Statement, said the ruling authorities not only lack reflection on Japan's aggression but also display a wartime logic disturbingly similar to that of the political leaders who led Japan into war more than 80 years ago.
Anatoly Koshkin, executive council member of the Russian Association of World War II Historians, said the ideological poison of militarism continues to spread in Japanese society; influenced by right-wing propaganda, many in the younger generation, who have no firsthand memories of the horrors of war, hope to see Japan's return as a major military power.
RAPID REMILITARIZATION
The Japanese government has long sought to bolster the country's military capabilities, gradually chipping away at the military constraints imposed by the postwar pacifist constitution and steadily hollowing out the long-standing principle of "exclusively defense-oriented policy."
Since Takaichi took office, her government has only hit the accelerator on military buildup.
At the institutional level, the Takaichi administration has been taking a series of aggressive moves, from seeking to revise the Three Non-Nuclear Principles when updating the country's three key security documents by the end of this year, to speeding up efforts to amend the pacifist constitution, aiming to make headway on a constitutional amendment proposal before next year's Liberal Democratic Party convention.
Meanwhile, a reform to centralize the country's intelligence apparatus is underway, including the establishment of a national intelligence agency, to tighten control over public opinion and facilitate military expansion.
In terms of military deployment and operations, the Takaichi administration has put offensive weapons into actual service, deploying long-range missiles with so-called "enemy base strike capabilities" in Japan for the first time and conducting the first test-firing of U.S.-made Tomahawk cruise missiles.
It has also accelerated efforts to expand the Self-Defense Forces' overseas presence, sending a large contingent of combat personnel to the Philippines for joint military drills for the first time, and is vigorously developing "new ways of warfare" and working to enhance sustained combat capabilities.
On the fiscal front, the Japanese government has significantly increased defense spending. A supplementary budget for fiscal 2025 allowed Japan to hit its target of raising defense-related spending to 2 percent of gross domestic product two years ahead of schedule, and the surge has continued unabated. With the initial defense budget for fiscal 2026 having reached a new record high, the defense budget request for fiscal 2027 is reportedly set to climb even further.
Economically, the Japanese authorities are trying to turn the defense industry into a new pillar for reviving the country's economy. In April this year, the Takaichi government revised the "three principles on transfer of defense equipment and technology" and their implementation guidelines, allowing the export of lethal weapons in principle, and thereby opening up markets for Japan's military industry.
Meanwhile, the country's 2026 defense white paper significantly expanded discussion of reinforcing defense production and technological bases, touting the defense business as a contributor to "Japan's economic growth."
In manipulating public opinion and perceptions, the Takaichi administration has not only continued to downplay, deny, and whitewash the history of Japanese aggression, but has also hyped up alleged "security threats" from neighboring countries, particularly the so-called "China threat," to pave the way for military expansion.
Takaichi has publicly claimed that a "Taiwan contingency" could constitute a "survival-threatening situation" that could allow Japan to exercise the right of collective self-defense, and has cast China as "an unprecedented and the greatest strategic challenge."
Australian business strategy consultant Antony Hing said Japan is "very rapidly" shifting away from its pacifist constitution, and it could be in breach of its international legal obligations in acting the way it's acting.
Ling Tek Soon, senior lecturer at the Institute of China Studies of the University of Malaya, said that Japan is constantly pushing beyond the institutional boundaries of the postwar order, departing from the "peaceful nation" identity and development path it has long professed.
HISTORY'S WARNING
Japanese historians, including Masahiro Yamazaki, have pointed out that Japan's current political, military, economic and ideological trajectory bears striking similarities to the path the country took prior to World War II.
Following the Meiji Restoration, Japan gradually embarked on a course of militarist expansion abroad. During the 1930s, it responded to economic crisis with military buildup and external aggression. Military leaders, politicians and powerful business interests formed close alliances to stoke fears of "external threats" and "existential crisis" to mobilize public support for war. National resources were concentrated in the military sector, benefiting the military establishment and large industrial conglomerates while ordinary people bore the economic burden and ultimately became victims of war.
Today, a similar scenario is playing out again. Faced with domestic challenges such as prolonged economic stagnation, Japan's right-wing conservative forces view "breaking free from the post-war order" and becoming a "normal country" as a supposed way out.
Government resources continue to shift toward defense, with military expansion presented as a means of stimulating economic growth. At the same time, narratives emphasizing "external threats," denying historical aggression and reviving prewar militarist ideology are increasingly used for political and social mobilization, leading to a resurgence of militarism in Japan.
These trends have sparked strong protests and heightened vigilance among the Japanese public.
Yamazaki warned that the government's persistent emphasis on "external threats" could easily steer Japan into war once again. Akira Yamada, professor at Meiji University, said Japan's continued military buildup risks fueling a regional arms race that could become increasingly difficult to reverse once established.
Critics also argue that Japan's remilitarization carries growing domestic costs. As defense spending reaches record levels, military contractors have reaped substantial profits while social welfare and other livelihood-related expenditures face mounting pressure. The result, they say, is worsening public finances and increasing hardship for ordinary citizens.
Atsushi Koketsu, professor emeritus at Yamaguchi University, argued that the government's push for remilitarization comes at the expense of public welfare. "It is fundamentally wrong to place people's livelihoods in insecurity in exchange for so-called national security," he said.
Kim Joo-Yong, professor of history and culture at South Korea's Wonkwang University, said the truly responsible path for Japan is to confront its history and draw lessons from it. "Countries in the region, together with peace-loving forces within Japan, should unite in opposing militarism," he said. Enditem
京公网安备 11010802027341号