Joint military drills provoke public anger

Japan and the United States began one of their largest joint military exercises on Monday, a move experts warned could heighten regional tensions and undermine peace and stability in the Asia-Pacific region.

Running through Oct 29, the Keen Sword 27 exercises span multiple operational domains, with training taking place across Japan, including in Okinawa, Kyushu and Hokkaido.

Japan's Type-25 surface-to-ship missile is being used in the exercises for the first time since its deployment in March. With a reported range of about 1,000 kilometers, the missile is among Japan's newly developed long-range strike systems, enabling it to target vessels and potentially reach targets far beyond Japanese territory.

About 45,000 Japanese troops and 12,000 US service personnel are participating in the biennial military drills.

Seven other nations are also taking part in some elements of the exercises, with five — France, Germany, the Netherlands, New Zealand and the Philippines — participating for the first time, according to Japan's Joint Staff.

Protest staged

Meanwhile, Japanese citizens staged a protest in front of the National Diet in Tokyo on Monday evening, opposing the military buildup and push for constitutional revision by Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi's government while calling for the preservation of peace.

Protesters chanted slogans including "Stop blindly following the United States", "Stop deploying long-range missiles", and "Takaichi must step down immediately".

According to the organizers, about 10,000 people took part in the rally, while more than 300 solidarity events were held across Japan.

This year's exercises come at a sensitive time, just weeks after the arrest of a US Marine in connection with the murder of a Japanese woman in Okinawa, where thousands of US troops are stationed.

The case has renewed public anger against US bases in Okinawa, where residents have long complained about noise, pollution and crime related to the bases. The majority of about 50,000 US troops in Japan under the bilateral security pact are stationed on the small but strategically important southern island.

Liu Shuliang, an associate researcher at the Tianjin Academy of Social Sciences, said this year's military exercises feature several new developments, noting that both the number of participants and the scale of the exercises reached new highs, demonstrating their offensive nature and combat readiness.

"Such large-scale, combat-oriented joint military exercises risk further destabilizing the regional security environment and heightening the risk of an arms race and military confrontation in the region," he said.

Liu said the deployment of long-range strike weapons by Japan and the US to Japan's southwestern islands, coupled with their integration into regular joint exercises, will directly alter the regional balance of offensive and defensive capabilities.

Chen Hong, director of East China Normal University's Asia-Pacific Studies Center, said that these deployments pose a serious threat to stability across the Taiwan Strait and heighten regional security risks.

While the US and Japan continue to expand joint military exercises and advance the forward deployment of long-range strike weapons — moves that may be intended to strengthen deterrence — they risk heightening other countries' sense of insecurity, Chen said.

As Japan deepens its strategic alignment with the US and amplifies claims about so-called security threats to justify strengthening the US-led regional military network, the risk of misperceptions and miscalculations in the region is likely to grow, he said.

He added that persistent regional security tensions could further undermine the investment climate, expose regional economic cooperation to greater disruption from geopolitical rivalries and slow the pace of regional economic integration.

Liu from Tianjin said that Japan should draw profound lessons from the devastation inflicted on Asian nations by its modern-era militarist aggression and expansion.

"It must fully renounce militarist thinking, uphold its pacifist Constitution, refrain from pursuing the status of a 'war-capable nation', and guard against the resurgence of militarism," he said.

Japan and the US should abandon their Cold War mentality and confrontational mindset, and immediately cease provocative military actions, including the deployment of long-range strike weapons and large-scale, combat-oriented joint exercises, he added.

Agencies contributed to this story.