U.S. and Japan Announce Defense Cooperation Explicitly Against China

Japan and the U.S. announced new Defense Cooperation Guidelines, the first revision since 1997, at a 2+2 meeting Monday of the countries’ defense and foreign affairs ministers/secretaries—Secretary of State John Kerry of State, Secretary of Defense Ash Carter, Defense Minister Gen Nakatani, and Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida.

Foreign Minister Kishida implied that the “reinterpretation” of the Constitution announced by Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s Cabinet last year, which would allow Japan to join in a U.S. war against China (or others) was a completed fact. But Abe deferred taking the issue to the Diet until next year, uncertain that it would pass (even many in his own party do not want to overthrow Japan’s post-war pacifist Constitution). The reinterpretation requires legislative changes which are far from certain to pass.

Kerry was explicit that this new concept was written into the Guidelines: “Today we mark the establishment of Japan’s capacity to defend not just its own territory, but also the United States and other partners as needed.” It would appear that U.S. approval supersedes Japan’s own constitutional procedures.

Equally egregious is the statement in the Defense Department release: “Other business in the meetings included the U.S. affirmation that the Senkaku Islands are territories of Japan and fall under the U.S.-Japan Treaty of Mutual Cooperation and Security.” This totally contradicts the official U.S. position that it will not take sides in territorial disputes—China and Japan contest sovereignty over the Senkaku/Diaoyu islands. President Obama last year belligerently asserted that he considered the contested islands to fall under the U.S. nuclear umbrella, but claimed it was only because the contested islands were being governed by Japan, not that he was taking sides on the sovereignty issue. Kerry, in his statement Monday to the press, maintained that cover story — but the Defense release dropped the pretense and asserted Japanese sovereignty—a blatant provocation of China.

The 2+2 leaders also announced the expansion of the U.S. missile defense posture in Japan, reporting that two more U.S. ballistic missile defense destroyers will be based in Japan, and that a second X-band radar construction site announced earlier will proceed. These also constitute direct military threats to China in the context of Obama’s first strike policy against China (Prompt Global Strike and Air-Sea Battle).