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Diet protest, anti-war
Nearly 25,000 people gathered outside Japan's National Diet building in Tokyo on Sunday to protest the government's defence policies and proposed changes to the country's pacifist constitution, as Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi's approval rating fell to its lowest level since taking office.
“Nearly 25,000 people gathered outside Japan's National Diet building in Tokyo on Sunday”
Participants carried anti-war placards and called on the government to abandon plans to revise Article 9 of the constitution, ease restrictions on arms exports and reconsider Japan's long-standing non-nuclear principles.
Demonstrators held signs reading "No war" and "Takaichi must resign" as they marched near the parliament building.
One rally participant said revising the constitution could allow Japan to initiate or participate more directly in military conflicts, while another participant said the government's measures to curb rising consumer prices had not significantly improved living conditions and called for Article 9 to remain unchanged.
Nuclear debate and taboos
Defense Minister Shinjiro Koizumi broke with convention by calling for a national debate on whether nuclear weapons should play a role in Japan’s defense, saying on internet program “Genron TV” on July 17, "For Japan, it’s a difficult issue to discuss, but one we cannot avoid touching on is nuclear,".
Koizumi argued that Japan "must debate and advance all policies without taboo," pointing to shifting security postures in Europe after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, including France strengthening its nuclear forces and Finland permitting deployment of nuclear weapons on its soil.
The remarks set the stage for a contentious debate ahead of the government’s planned revision of three key security documents, expected by the end of the year, as Japan’s postwar security is defined by the principles of “not possessing, not producing, and not permitting the entry of” nuclear weapons.
When pressed on the matter, Koizumi criticized opposition parties for their rigid adherence to the non-nuclear principles, saying, "I wonder if protecting the status quo has taken precedence over truly protecting Japan."
China warns of heavy price
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Lin Jian said on Monday that strong calls from Japanese local assemblies to uphold the Three Non-Nuclear Principles reflect the public aspiration for peace, noting that since the Takaichi administration came to power, a total of 82 local assemblies across Japan, including those in Hiroshima and Nagasaki, have submitted written opinions to the central government or the parliament.
“"Japan will inevitably pay a heavy price in the end,"”
Lin said that if Japanese ruling authorities keep misjudging the situation on nuclear issues and persist in revising the Three Non-Nuclear Principles to allow the deployment of allied nuclear weapons in Japan, "Japan will inevitably pay a heavy price in the end,".
In the same briefing, Lin Jian framed the issue as tied to Japan’s obligations under the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons, saying Japan bears "indisputable, undeniable and non-negotiable obligations under international law" to refrain from receiving, manufacturing, acquiring or transferring nuclear weapons.
He added that China calls on the international community and all peace-loving people in Japan to urge Japanese authorities to stop pressuring to revise the three non-nuclear principles and to end the so-called "extended deterrence" cooperation with other countries, while taking immediate effective measures on sensitive nuclear materials.