Japan has traditionally exercised rigorous self-restraint on arms exports and overseas transfers of defense technology.

It has long been one of the main pillars of a pacifist Japan that is endorsed by the majority of the public.

In addition to allowing the nation to possess enemy base strike capability and double its defense spending, the government is now moving to eviscerate its long-held principle regarding arms exports. This change in defense policy should not be allowed.

The government is set to revise three key national security documents by the end of this week.

The revised policies are expected to state explicitly that the government plans to review the nation’s Three Principles on Transfer of Defense Equipment and Technology as well as their Implementation Guidelines.

A government panel of experts recently recommended that Japan should expand its overseas transfers of defense equipment from the viewpoint of fostering and bolstering the nation’s defense industry and called for “restrictions to be eliminated as much as possible” for that purpose.

Constraints on arms exports could be further emasculated depending on what the review will end up looking like.

The Three Principles on Transfer of Defense Equipment and Technology were formulated in 2014 when Shinzo Abe held power for a second time as prime minister to replace the Three Principles of Arms Exports, which had been in place for half a century.

The former document, in principle, banned arms exports and approved them only on an exceptional basis. The new set of principles state that Japan is allowed to export arms when three conditions are met.

First, no arms should be exported to a country that is party to a conflict or where similar circumstances prevail.

Second, arms exports should generally be limited to cases where the transfer contributes to peace or to Japan’s security, and must be scrutinized strictly.

Third, the recipient country will be obliged to obtain Japan’s prior consent regarding extra-purpose use and transfer to third parties.

As of May this year, the government had signed defense equipment and technology transfer agreements with 12 countries. The partners include the United States, Britain, Australia, India, Thailand, Vietnam and Indonesia. Japan has worked with them primarily on joint research on related technologies.

In 2020, it was decided that Japan would deliver air surveillance radar systems developed by Mitsubishi Electric Corp. to the Philippines in what will be the first finished defense products to be transferred overseas.

Similar measures could make sense if they help deepen cooperation with friendly nations and contribute to regional stability. Even in such cases, however, Japan would be better served by abiding by the fundamental principle that it will not become an exporter of arms if it encourages conflicts.

In that regard, it should not be taken lightly that some officials in the government and the ruling Liberal Democratic Party intend to open the door for the export of lethal weapons, such as fighter jets and escort vessels.

The government said last week that Japan will work with Britain and Italy to jointly develop a next-generation fighter jet for the Air Self-Defense Force.

When asked about the prospects of future exports of finished products to a third country, Defense Minister Yasukazu Hamada said, “When considering the matter, we will take it into account that Britain is attaching importance to exports.”

In our view, a major policy shift is in the cards without serious debate if the trilateral agreement envisages Japan easing its three principles in the future.

The LDP worked out a proposal on national security in April that called on Prime Minister Fumio Kishida to review the three principles and their implementation guidelines.

The proposal cited the example of Ukraine and said Japan should study an “institutional arrangement that would allow a broad range of (defense) equipment to be transferred to a nation facing aggression that goes against international law.”

Russia’s invasion should never be tolerated, and different nations are rightly aiding Ukraine through different means.

But that should not be used as a pretext for enabling Japan to export weapons of offense.

--The Asahi Shimbun, Dec. 14