Japan, the wolf that's asking the world to ignore its sharpened fangs – news.cgtn.com

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First Voice
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Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi speaks during a session of the House of Representatives Budget Committee in Tokyo, Japan, November 10, 2025. /VCG
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The right-wing, militaristic Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi has just asked the world to have a collective memory loss about the tens of millions died 80 years ago.
In her speech at the UN General Assembly, Takaichi claimed that the “Enemy State Clauses” in the UN Charter should be deleted, citing Japan’s “significant contributions to the efforts of the United Nations for the last 70 years.” While making her mark on the world stage, her government is considering raising defense spending to around 3.5% of GDP over a decade, doubling the current level.
Exonerating her country from an atrocious militaristic past while preparing her country for new aggression? Does she really think that she can fool the world about what she’s doing?
Japan’s status as a defeated country in WWII is a cornerstone of the postwar international order. The “Enemy State Clauses,” along with the relevant provisions, are put there to prevent the defeated countries from posing a threat to international peace and security again, and to provide institutional safeguards for security in the postwar international order – i.e., if an “enemy state” resumes aggression, regional organizations or anti-fascist allied countries could take actions against it without prior authorization from the UN Security Council. This serves as a crucial legal and, frankly, a powerful physical deterrent to prevent the resurgence of militarism.
Takaichi’s intentions haven’t fooled people. In the comment section of Bloomberg’s relevant reporting on Facebook, a netizen named Masayoshi Numajiri from Japan commented: “Nope, history is history; don’t erase the fact we have done.” Koh Mee Leow asked: “Have they apologized and compensated the victims of WWII for their wrongdoing?” Barry Koh had an acute observation: “Once you have a war criminal record, it stays because it was a detestable act committed against humanity. It should serve to remind and deter others from committing such a crime.”
People attend a protest in front of the Japanese prime minister’s official residence in Tokyo, Japan, November 21, 2025. /Xinhua
Some have argued that Japan shouldn’t be treated like this forever, following Takaichi’s logic. But, here’s the thing: If a person has committed a heinous crime – manslaughter, let’s say – that person gets a proper punishment and a record on their file. If that person repeats the crime, the law is set up to impose a more severe punishment. And that record stays on the file.
That’s how justice is carried out. Why should a country be treated differently just because it has done “community service” for 70 years?
And this is a country actively seeking to build up its military muscles. In March, 2026, its defense minister announced the deployment of the Type 25 Surface-to-Ship Guided Missile in Kumamoto Prefecture. The missile has a range exceeding 1,000 kilometers, far greater than what “self-defense” demanded. Japan is also accelerating its space combat capabilities, with its low-Earth-orbit military reconnaissance network becoming operational a month after the missile’s deployment.
It is reported that, starting in January 2027, a 1% “special defense income tax” will be added to personal income tax, officially turning the Japanese citizens into fuel for militaristic expansion.
And as the only country that suffered nuclear attacks, Japan has been deliberately maintaining the capability for rapid nuclear breakout. It has a stockpile of more than 44 metric tons of separated plutonium, enough to produce a large number of nuclear warheads.
Should the world worry about a country with a prior criminal record that is now actively building up its offensive capability? A wolf in sheep’s clothing is a popular idiom. And we are looking at a wolf that’s not hiding its fangs and claws anymore.
So, yes, everyone should be worried about it.
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