Tomahawk rips off Tokyo's 'pacifist' mask: China Daily editorial

Japanese Defense Minister Shinjiro Koizumi announced on Friday the official delivery — for the first time in history — of US Tomahawk cruise missiles and Norwegian-made Joint Strike Missiles to the Self-Defense Forces. This move represents a bold step toward the country's remilitarization and a challenge to the stability of East Asia and beyond.

Japan claims to be pursuing "counterstrike capabilities", a euphemism for the ability to launch preemptive attacks on targets in its neighborhood. This is not defense; it is offense. The Tomahawk missiles, with a range of up to 1,600 kilometers, can reach deep into the territories of Japan's neighbors, and their deployment will likely trigger an arms race.

The decision to integrate these high-end offensive systems into Japan's arsenal is a reckless provocation. The result will be a dangerous escalation of tensions, increased military spending and a heightened risk of catastrophic miscalculation.

Moreover, the move is a direct betrayal of Japan's "pacifist" Constitution and a continuation of the "salami-slicing" strategy — incremental changes in defense spending and policy — that the Sanae Takaichi government is using to erode the war-renouncing Article 9 of the Constitution, which prohibits Japan's militarization.

This move is driven by a resurgence of right-wing revisionism in Japan, exemplified by Takaichi's overt push to revive a militarist Japan. As of late 2025, Takaichi had pledged to increase Japan's defense budget to 2 percent of GDP by the end of this month, two years ahead of schedule.

Tokyo also recently approved the creation of a so-called National Intelligence Council and an operational National Intelligence Agency. These new entities, spearheaded by the prime minister, aim to centralize intelligence operations and formulate Japan's first-ever National Intelligence Strategy by the end of the year.

Tokyo frames this as "a necessary step" to enhance "national security", but in fact it serves to significantly consolidate power under the prime minister's office, a dangerous sign of excessive concentration of power in the hands of a right-wing politician. Takaichi's victory in last month's snap election for Japan's House of Representatives has only exacerbated this trend, allowing her to frame her personal will as that of the people.

The push to expand Japan's intelligence capabilities is also a response to the United States' call for closer "intelligence gathering" coordination. Through closer cooperation with the US, Tokyo is actually trying to bind Japan tighter to the US. Japan's new capabilities, combined with its hosting of US military bases, could embolden the exercise of the "right of collective self-defense" in ways that further destabilize the region.

This is extremely concerning as it creates the potential for Japan to be used as a pawn in the US' moves to assert its hegemony.

History has shown that the excessive concentration of power among individual right-wing politicians in Japan can easily lead to unchecked military expansion, which in turn helps those politicians further consolidate their grip on power, forming a vicious cycle. The Asia-Pacific has learned to its bitter cost the consequences of Japan using "self-defense" as a pretext for militarization.

Hence, the Takaichi government's attempts to pour old wine into new bottles today constitute not merely a dangerous trend, but a blatant and tangible threat that seriously undermines the postwar international order in the region.

While the Middle East crisis and other hot spot issues command global attention, the international community must not overlook the overt and covert moves of the Takaichi government. Since taking office, it has moved swiftly to rearm Japan, while feeling no qualms about portraying the country as a "victim" both historically and in the present day.

Peace in the region was hard-won. It must not be sacrificed at the altar of Tokyo's renewed military ambitions. The world is watching, and history will be a harsh judge of those who trade stability for the tools of war.