Beware of Japan becoming vanguard of NATO's meddling in Asia Pacific

警惕日本充当北约染指亚太“带路党”

Source
China Military Online
Editor
Li Wei
Time
2022-09-15 17:29:37

By Chen Junfeng and Wang Wei

陈俊峰、王威

It is recently reported that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan may appoint a specially-assigned ambassador to NATO, changing the previous practice of having its ambassador to Belgium doubling as ambassador to NATO, and thus binding itself more tightly with this organization. As the international situation is going through an unstable period, Japan, a country with a militarist history, getting increasingly close with the world’s most powerful military and political organization today is sure to arouse close attention and vigilance in the international community.

有媒体近日报道称,日本外务省或设立专职驻北约大使。此举将一改日本此前驻北约代表由驻比利时大使兼任的做法,标志着日本进一步与北约“捆绑”。在国际形势动荡不安的当口,日本这样一个有着军国主义历史的国家,与当今最强大的军事政治同盟不断走近,势必引发国际社会高度关注和警惕。

In recent years, Japan has been actively approaching NATO, not only supporting the so-called "Asian Pacific version of NATO" conceived by the US, but also attempting to play a key part in it. In 2013, it signed the first Joint Political Declaration with NATO, whereby the two sides agreed to cooperate in such areas as counter-piracy, disaster relief, and counter-terrorism; later they further intensified military interactions. Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida’s attendance at the NATO Madrid Summit in June 2022 made him the first Japanese leader to ever attend this summit. Moreover, Japan has been an eager participant in the US-led quadrilateral mechanism and the Indo-Pacific economic framework. It’s easy to see that it has become the chief accomplice in America and NATO’s ploy to roil the waters in the Asia Pacific.

近年来,日本积极向北约靠拢,支持构建美国设想的“亚太版北约”,还妄图在其中发挥重要影响。2013年,日本首次与北约签署共同政治宣言,双方同意围绕打击海盗、救灾、反恐等方面开展合作。此后,双方又进一步加强军事领域的互动。今年6月,日本首相岸田文雄参加北约马德里峰会,成为第一位参加北约峰会的日本首相。此外,日本还在美国主导的四边机制和印太经济框架中频频出力。不难看出,日本已成为美国和北约搅乱亚太局势的主要“帮凶”。

But Japan is obviously not contented. After all, the ROK, Australia and New Zealand also participated in the Madrid summit as non-members, and ROK even joined the NATO Cooperative Cyber Defence Centre of Excellence earlier as the first official member from Asia. Appointing a specially-assigned ambassador to NATO will enable Japan to stay in better touch with the organization and further cement its position and role in it. During the Madrid summit, Fumio Kishida urged NATO to pay more attention to and engage more deeply in Indo-Pacific affairs. In the longer term, Japan is very likely to seek to host NATO’s office in the region.

而日本显然对此并不满足。毕竟,以非成员身份参加北约马德里峰会的国家,还有韩国、澳大利亚和新西兰等国,而韩国更在此前加入了北约合作网络防御卓越中心,成为该中心首个亚洲正式成员国。设立专职的日本驻北约大使,可以使日本更好地与北约保持沟通,进一步稳固日本在北约的地位与作用。岸田文雄在参加北约马德里峰会期间呼吁北约加大对印太事务的关注度与参与度。从长远来说,日本极可能图谋成为北约在这一地区的“办事处”所在地。

But "benefiting others without thinking of itself" is never in Japan's nature. Cooperating in NATO's expansion is just a pretext to tighten their relations, while Japan’s real goal lies in its own “normalization”. While the US is hyping up the “major-country competition” and seeing China and Russia as the strategic archrivals, Japan has danced to the American tune by hyping the "China threat" in hopes of getting Washington’s approval of lifting the ban on its military development and fundamentally enhancing its defense capacity. It's clear that Tokyo is determined to be the vanguard of NATO’s expansion into Asia Pacific. As long as NATO keeps widening its presence in the region, Japan, the so-called bridgehead, can take the opportunity to play a bigger role in military, even become a military and political power in Asia again. In this process, it has attempted successively to break the restrictions imposed by the pacifist constitution, assigned the Japan Self-defense Forces (JSDF) overseas on the excuse of “making international contributions”, and developed aggressive military forces.

当然,“毫不利己、专门利人”并非日本的风格。配合北约扩展影响只是日本拉拢北约的幌子;让日本成为“正常国家”,才是其极力讨好北约的根本目的。在美国推动“大国竞争”、将中俄视为主要战略对手的背景下,日本随之起舞,不断渲染“中国威胁”,企图换取美国对其军事松绑的认可,借机发展自身军力,以实现“从根本上强化防卫力”的目标。不难看出,日本已决意充当北约向亚太地区拓展的“带路党”。只要北约持续扩大在亚太地区的存在,作为“桥头堡”的日本便可以借机发挥更大的军事作用,甚至重塑“亚洲军政大国”地位。在这个过程中,日本妄图暗度陈仓,进一步突破和平宪法的限制,借口“作出国际贡献”让自卫队走出国门,并着力发展进攻性军事力量。

By that time, Japan, with largely enhanced military strengths, will be more active on the overseas military stage and more frequently meddle in Asian Pacific affairs militarily. Considering that the country has never thoroughly reflected on its history of aggression, there is a big chance that Japan will once again become the source of regional turmoil and warfare, posing a serious threat to regional peace and stability.

届时,日本在军事上或将出现这样的景象:军力加速提升,在海外军事舞台上更加活跃,从军事上插手亚太地区事务更加频繁。由于日本至今还没有对过去侵略战争历史进行彻底深刻的反省,日本这样做意味着其再次成为地区动荡源乃至战争策源地的可能性急剧上升,地区和平稳定将受到严重威胁。

Japan, a country still haunted by militarism; NATO, the world’s largest military organization functioning as a tool to maintain American hegemony. Their closer relationship and attempt to introduce to the Asia Pacific a security model that has already proven a failure in Europe will only lead to new unrest. Japan should be reminded that leading the plague to the East is extremely unwise and inviting a wolf into the house is equal to self-destruction. Both the plot to establish a so-called Asian Pacific version of NATO and the accelerated push for the organization to turn to the Asia Pacific are against historical trends and bound to meet with vehement opposition from regional countries. Those who are behind such moves will end up outsmarting themselves and digging their own graves.

一个是军国主义阴魂不散的国家,一个是作为美国霸权主义工具的全球最大军事组织,日本与北约不断走近,试图将已在欧洲被证明失败的安全模式引入亚太,只会制造新的动荡。需要正告日本的是,“祸水东引”极不明智,“引狼入室”终将自戕。无论是建立所谓“亚太版北约”或推动加快北约“亚太化”,都是在悖历史潮流而动,必将遭到地区国家的强烈反对,最终落得机关算尽、误人误己的可悲下场。

 

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