Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi avoided commenting on the Trump administration’s arrest of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, but some within her government harshly criticized the U.S. military action.

In a post on X on Jan. 4, Takaichi said, “We will advance diplomatic efforts toward the restoration of democracy and stabilization of the situation in Venezuela.”

She also mentioned that Japan has consistently maintained its position of promoting democracy in the South American nation.

“Our country has traditionally respected fundamental values and principles such as freedom, democracy and the rule of law,” she added.

Takaichi said Tokyo would coordinate its response with related countries, including the Group of Seven.

For now, she indicated her top priority is to ensure the safety of the approximately 160 Japanese nationals residing in Venezuela.

The Foreign Ministry issued a similar statement on the same day. It has established a local task force at the Japanese Embassy in Venezuela and a liaison office within the ministry.

There has been no information of any harm to Japanese nationals so far, officials said.

CRITICISM WITHIN GOVERNMENT

The U.S. attack on the Venezuelan capital of Caracas has put the Japanese government in a difficult position.

Japan’s alliance with the United States is the cornerstone of Tokyo’s foreign and security policy. But Japan is also a strong proponent of the rule of international law.

Although the Trump administration described its military action in Venezuela as a “U.S. law enforcement operation,” there is a strong view around the world that the United States violated international law.

This opinion is shared among officials within the Japanese government.

“The legal explanation from the United States is insufficient,” said a senior Foreign Ministry official.

Itsunori Onodera, chair of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party’s Research Commission on Security, also reacted to the U.S. action in an X post on Jan. 4.

“The U.S. administration’s invasion of Venezuela is a ‘change of the status quo by force’ itself, and it contradicts the grounds for denouncing China and Russia,” Onodera, a former defense minister, wrote.

He continued: “If, for example, China were to attempt a change of the status quo by force against Taiwan, it would be difficult for the Trump administration to unite international public opinion, even if the United States were to strongly oppose it. There are concerns that East Asia would become increasingly unstable.”

Another senior official of the Foreign Ministry said Trump’s action should raise worries around the globe.

“The Trump administration has sent a message to every country that it will do anything it sets its mind to,” the official said.

According to sources familiar with internal government discussions, officials decided that Japan would forgo a legal assessment of the U.S. military operation but would mention the “rule of law” in Takaichi’s X post.

OPPOSITION BACKLASH

Opposition parties were much more open in blasting the United States over its attack against Venezuela.

“Is there legitimacy in light of the U.N. Charter and international law?” Yoshihiko Noda, leader of the main opposition Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan, asked at a news conference in Ise, Mie Prefecture, on Jan. 4. “It is extremely doubtful. I have no choice but to express regret.”

Kazuo Shii, chair of the executive committee of the Japanese Communist Party, posted on X on Jan. 3, “The actions of the U.S. Trump administration are an act of aggression that violently tramples the U.N. Charter and international law, and I strongly condemn them.”

Democratic Party for the People leader Yuichiro Tamaki said at a news conference in Ise on Jan. 4 that the world may now have entered a new phase.

“Countries that actually possess the capability and will to change the status quo by force have begun to create a new status quo, transcending the long-standing postwar order that ‘does not permit changes to the status quo by force,’’’ he said. “We must take a hard look at the fact that we have entered such an era.”

Komeito leader Tetsuo Saito, in an address at party headquarters on Jan. 5, criticized the U.S. action, saying, “One-sided changes to the situation by force must not be permitted.”

He called on Japan to act.

“I would like the government to appeal to the United States about the importance of upholding international law,” Saito said.

(This article was compiled from reports written by Ryo Kiyomiya and Mika Kuniyoshi.)