Recently, Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi made provocative remarks on Taiwan in the Diet by linking the Taiwan question to a "survival-threatening situation" of Japan, which implies the possibility of armed intervention in the Taiwan Straits.

  Such dangerous rhetoric is not an isolated political stunt. It reflects a deeper agenda among Japan's right-wing forces to break free from the constraints of the pacifist constitution and pursue qualitative change in policy. Under the guise of "threat," Japan is systematically transforming itself into a country capable of waging war. This not only undermines the post-war international order but also poses significant risks for peace and stability in East Asia. 

　　Historically, Japan has launched brutal wars of aggression, inflicting immense suffering on Asian countries - including China. The core logic behind the formulation of the constitution of Japan is to free Japan from the shackles of militarism by renouncing the right to wage war and restricting military forces. 

　　Article 9 of Japan's constitution clearly stipulates: "The Japanese people forever renounce war as a sovereign right of the nation and the threat or use of force as means of settling international disputes."  

　　Article 9 became the cornerstone of Japan's post-war development and fundamentally precluded the exercise of collective self-defense. If the state renounces the right of belligerency and maintains no war potential, collective self-defense - fighting alongside other countries - naturally becomes impossible. 

　　When Shigeru Yoshida became prime minister in 1946, he pursued a national strategy prioritizing economic reconstruction over military buildup. Leaning heavily on the US-Japan alliance to reduce defense burdens, he concentrated national resources on economic revival. After the establishment of the Self-Defense Forces in 1954, to address debates over their constitutionality, then Foreign Ministry Treaties Bureau director Takezo Shimoda introduced the concept of collective self-defense in Diet testimony. Japan later affirmed the principle of "minimum extent necessary for self-defense." 

　　However, in December 1982, then prime minister Yasuhiro Nakasone proposed the "general settlement of post-war politics," seeking to alter the Yoshida doctrine and shift Japan's national development strategy. In May 1993, Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) former secretary-general Ichiro Ozawa argued Japan should revise the constitution and become a "normal nation."  

　　On July 1, 2014, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's cabinet adopted a resolution to reinterpret the constitution to allow Japan to exercise the right to collective self-defense. The constitution allowed "collective self-defense" - using force to defend allies under attack.  

　　This series of moves essentially bypassed constitutional revision. By altering the interpretation rather than formally amending the constitution, it hollowed out the core spirit of Article 9 of the constitution and marked a pivotal step in shifting postwar Japan from a path of peace to a path of military capability.  

　　From the perspective of the international order, Japan's post-war demilitarization was a core component of the post-war settlement. It served as a necessary restriction on a former aggressor state and a stabilizing pillar of peace in East Asia.  

　　Japan's inability to wage war again - under any pretext - reflects not only the lessons of history but also the dual constraints of the post-war order and international norms. Historically, Japan's militarist aggression proved that military expansion leads only to self-destruction, and any attempt to repeat that path will face strong opposition from the peoples of Asia.  

　　Peace and development remain the global themes. Widespread international criticism shows that Japan's military adventurism lacks legitimacy and will only deepen its diplomatic isolation. Takaichi's remarks on Taiwan question represent the extreme manifestation of this dangerous policy shift and clearly violate Japan's own legal constraints.  

　　Takaichi's attempt to distort China's internal affairs into a "survival-threatening situation" for Japan not only contradicts the one-China principle but also openly undermines the political foundations of China-Japan diplomatic normalization. Militarizing the Taiwan question serves only as a pretext for further Japanese rearmament and pushes regional security closer to confrontation.  

　　The Japanese government must face history squarely, respect reality, adhere to the spirit of the constitution, abandon militaristic expansions and stop making erroneous statements on the Taiwan question. Only by returning to peaceful development can Japan truly contribute to stability in East Asia. 

　　The author is an assistant researcher at the Institute of Japanese Studies at Chinese Academy of Social Sciences.  

　　（来源：《环球时报》英文版2025年11月25日；作者：孙家珅，中国社会科学院日本研究所助理研究员）