Japan officially permits the export of lethal weapons, Ministry of Foreign Affairs responds

On April 21st, the Japanese government passed a cabinet resolution to officially amend the “Three Principles for the Transfer of Defense Equipment,” allowing the export of offensive weapons without prior approval from the parliament. A reporter from Japanese television asked at the meeting what China’s comment was on this matter. Guo Jiakun stated that China is seriously concerned about this. In that year, Japanese militarism aggressively invaded and expanded, committing heinous crimes against China and neighboring Asian countries. It is precisely because of Japan’s invasion history that, in order to prevent the resurgence of Japanese militarism, a series of documents with full international legal effect, such as the Cairo Declaration, the Potsdam Declaration, and Japan’s surrender document, explicitly stipulate that Japan should be completely disarmed and not maintain industries that could enable rearmament. Japan’s constitution also imposes strict restrictions on its military’s combat rights and war rights. After the war, Japan established strict regulations on military development and weapons exports, such as the “Exclusive Defense” policy. In 1972, the Japanese government issued a unified stance on arms exports, clearly stating that Japan, as a peaceful nation, handles arms exports with caution. Guo Jiakun pointed out that Japan’s recent series of dangerous moves in the military security field expose its self-proclaimed identity as a “peaceful country” and “self-defense only.” Many experts and scholars worry that Japan is reopening its war machine and exporting war abroad. Japan’s acceleration of “re-militarization” is a fact and reality, with concrete plans and actions. The international community, including China, will remain highly vigilant and resolutely oppose Japan’s “new militarism.” (The Paper)