By Li Ruoyu
Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga’s Cabinet approved a record ¥106.61 trillion ($1.03 trillion) draft budget for fiscal year 2021 on December 21. The record-high budget will be sent for deliberation after the opening of the National Diet next year.As the ruling coalition formed by the Liberal Democratic Party and the Komeito Party holds a majority in the parliament, the draft budget is almost all done.
The Japanese government’s 2021 budget has attracted widespread attention due to two main reasons: first, this is the first annual budget formulated by the cabinet of Yoshihide Suga, so the outside world generally expected to read the governing thoughts and policies of Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga from it; second, the defense budget of ¥5.34 trillion ($514 million) also hit a record high in addition to the record-high fiscal budget. The negative growth of the Japanese economy this year is basically a foregone conclusion affected by the pandemic. However, Japan's defense budget has increased for nine consecutive years, which has triggered various speculations and uneasiness.
The sub-items of Japan's defense budget show that the US is the final flow of funds for the items involved in equipment procurement, US military stationing costs, etc. In other words, perhaps the US is the biggest beneficiary of Japan's expanded defense budget. In a sense, the more Japan expands its defense budget, the more Japan will be controlled by the US. The high degree of military binding between Japan and the US has increased potential risks to the Asia-Pacific region.
As the US has strengthened its containment force against China, Japan's military development in recent years has also aimed at China. The Defense of Japan 2019 white paper compiled by the Ministry of Defense of Japan unequivocally stated that China's growing military might has replaced DPRK as the main security threat to Japan. However, the Defense of Japan 2020 white paper has become more aggravated and declared, "China has continued unilateral attempts to change the status quo by force in the East China Sea and the South China Sea, seized military bases through the Belt and Road cooperation." The Chinese government has already made a very clear and powerful response against the groundless accusations by the Japanese government. Chinese Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Zhao Lijian said on July 14 that "Japan's Defense of Japan 2020 white paper is fraught with bias against China and false information. China has already stated its solemn position. The white paper is filled with efforts to incite the so-called 'China threat', and it is actually 'book of lies'."
The COVID-19 pandemic is the keyword of 2020. Japan is experiencing the third wave of the pandemic since November, and the number of positive cases has repeatedly reached new highs. Rather than expending manpower and resources on preventing the vague "China threat", it might be better forthe Japanese government to concentrate on preventing and controlling the pandemic. After all, China and Japan are neighbors that cannot be changed. During the fight against the pandemic, the mutual assistance and exchanges of "although hills 'n rills set us apart,the moon and wind share our kind heart" once again proved that friendly coexistence is the common aspiration of the people of China and Japan, and also the general trend of the development of China-Japan relations.
This article is originally published on china.com.cn, and is translated from Chinese into English and edited by the China Military Online. The information, ideas or opinions appearing in this article do not necessarily reflect the views of eng.chinamil.com.cn.
