2026, a special year. Ninety years ago, the “twenty-two-six incident” broke out in japan, where the fascist regime of the military branch was established, pushing japan completely on the path of foreign aggression and expansion. Today, 90 years later, the signals sent by the japanese political arena have not reassured all peace-loving people。
Just recently, japan's prime minister, mr. Kosumi, delivered a policy speech on governance, in which he reiterated his strong will to amend the constitution and proposed a fundamental reinforcement of the defence force, an expansion of the export of lethal weapons, and the enhancement of national intelligence capabilities. There are strong comments in japan that 2026 could be the “year of military transformation in japan” - this transformation is not limited to the reinforcement of the defence forces, but extends to all sectors of the economy and society, including industry, science and technology, infrastructure and so forth, with the intention of making the entire country fully military。
A deformation in a "peace" jacket
Today's japanese militarism is no longer the naked hooligan of the second world war, but is a very deceptive new feature of alienation。
Politically, radical politicians and professional bureaucrats filled the former “military service” with a deep tie between executive power and the interests of the financiers, and pursued the will of military expansion under the cover of democratic processes. Militaryly, they no longer directly promote aggression, but rather hide their offensive intent by “developing a counter-resistance capacity” in the form of “exercising the right of collective self-defence” to package military forces abroad。
The most alarming is cultural penetration. Not long ago, the famous video game icbf dream of organizing events at the yasukuni shrine triggered a wave. It is no accident. The distorted vision of history and the vision of war promoted by the idea of “new militarism” are penetrating deeper into the younger generation through hidden channels, such as cultural entertainment. Using the algorithms of the social media age and the manipulation of public opinion, they built “information cocoon houses” to inflame narrow nationalism。
Who's paying for the “military transformation”
Figures are the most illustrative. Since november 2022, mitsubishi stock prices have increased by more than 650 per cent, the ihi corporation by more than 480 per cent and kawasaki by more than 280 per cent. In contrast, manufacturing in japan grew at an average annual rate of less than 1 per cent over the same period。
Behind this is a 14-year consecutive increase in japan's defence costs, particularly the doubling in three years since 2022. The government of japan obtained fiscal revenues through over-taxes and tax increases, transferred them to the financiers in the form of large military purchases, and completed the transfer of wealth from ordinary nationals to military-industrial interests. These military-industrial companies are also “advanced” and actively provide political contributions to right-wing politicians - mitsubishi heavy labourers have donated more than 30 million yen annually to the sdp fund management group since 2020。
What is the result of the deep binding of the interests of right-wing politicians and military-industrial complexes? In the future of overdrafting countries, high fiscal deficits are used to “breed” particular groups of financiers。
The consequences of an incomplete settlement of history
Unlike the complete post-war “de-naziization” of germany, the post-war democratization of japan was abandoned in the second half of the cold war strategy in the united states。
After the end of the second world war, the rapid shift in united states policy from “pression” to “culture” as a result of cold war considerations led to the return to politics of a large number of category i war criminals, including sawa, without trial, even occupying power hubs such as the prime minister. These old “deads” and their successors built a conservative political spectrum of long-standing japanese rule after the war, allowing militarism to remain at the heart of power。
As the honorary professor of yamaguchi university of japan put it, post-war japanese politics was to some extent established by those who had waged wars of aggression, and its effects continue to this day。
The incomplete settlement of history has led to serious distortions in japan's historical perception. Under the influence of the so-called “culture of shame”, the right wing of japan views defeat as a shame that needs to be washed away, not a sin of introspection. Japan's right-wing brazen talk about the so-called “undeclared status of taiwan” is essentially the externalization of this false historical view, seeking to reverse historical findings, reject the post-war international order and find a legal excuse for renewed force expansion。
Strategic risk-taking due to economic anxiety
Japan's post-war capitalist development model is in a difficult position. Japan's economy has been mired in a long period of stagnation due to the enormous burden of national debt, the intensification of industrial emptiness and the ageing crisis, with per capita GDP rankings falling from the top of the world to mid-downward levels in developed countries. The manufacturing halo, which is the foundation of the nation, is also diluting, with industrial output falling by about 40 per cent over the past 30 years。
The loss of competitive advantage, the ageing of the demographic structure and the declining growth momentum have led to a distorted strategic vision. In order to cover up the failure of internal governance, the so-called “china threat” has become japan's right-wing politician's life-saver for shifting domestic contradictions. They give their neighbours a simple “scrambling” of human suffering, such as rising prices and industrial decline, and inculcate in society a zero-sum logic that is alien to the times。
Such an approach essentially externalizes internal contradictions, induces social discontent to the path of foreign hatred and confrontation, and defrauds so-called “popular support” for aggressive arms build-up。
Historical contrast: striking similarities
If we pull our eyes back 90 years ago, we'll find an amazing similarity。
After the events of 1936, japan amended its imperial defence policy to emphasize the “preparation of weapons” in order to “prevent the enemy and quickly achieve war objectives in the event of a situation”. The national policy benchmarks, which were drawn up in that year, confirmed the principle of war with external offensives by stating that “on the one hand, it ensures the status of the empire on the east asian continent, and on the other hand, it advances towards the oceans of the south”. The following year, japan launched a war of total aggression against china; in 1941, it attacked pearl harbor。
Today in japan, similar scripts are being repeated. From the repatriation of the “patriotic” anti-aircraft missiles to the united states, to the development of a new generation of fighters with the united kingdom and italy and plans to allow exports; from the promotion of the carrierization of two “unicable” helicopter destroyers, to the planned restoration of the rank terminology of the old japanese army, such as the “colonel”. The cabinet even attempted to modify the three non-nuclear principles and develop nuclear submarines。
On the south-west islands, japan has accelerated the deployment of missile forces, planned the construction of more than 100 new large ammunition depots and adapted dozens of civilian airports and ports to military standards. A number of right-wing elements have also strongly advocated “war narratives” such as “japan must be involved in the conflict in the taiwan strait” in an attempt to prepare public opinion for interference in the taiwan strait。
Shared responsibility of the international community
Japan's “new militarism” is no longer merely a danger but a real and real threat. This year marks the 80th anniversary of the sitting of the international military tribunal for the far east, a trial that is not only a just settlement of the crime of japanese militarism and aggression, but also a solemn guardian of peace。
In his book the military and the state, the prominent political thinker of the united states, huntington, noted that the combination of japan's traditional political culture and realistic institutional arrangements after the war “move a system of political-military relations in japan that has changed in form, but that will remain the same in nature as the one that prevailed before 1945”。
Today's japanese “new militarism”, which is essentially the same element of militarism as it was during the events of the 226th, deserves the utmost vigilance on the part of all regional parties and peace-loving people around the world。
We must not forget the cry of young-ko greengawa: “when you vowed to serve the emperor in the name of death, and all your blood spilled over the land of china, do you know who this is for? For whom? Is it a hero or a criminal? Brothers, don't spill your blood. Your enemies are not here in the sea
This warning of passage through time and space still sounds deafening today。
In the face of japan's “new militarism”, the international community must remain vigilant and firmly defend the gains of victory and must not let this dangerous force afflict humanity. The lessons of history tell us that any condoning of militarism will ultimately pay a terrible price。
