Tokio
Artur Draus
Gdansk Journal of East Asian Studies, Issue 9, 2016, pp. 40 - 50
https://doi.org/10.4467/23538724GS.16.004.5007When Shinzō Abe became the Prime Minister of Japan in 2006, he promised groundbreaking reforms to the national security system of Japan and a revision of the Article 9 of the Japanese Constitution, which renounced war and prevented Japan from maintaining any war potential. However, under the recent interpretation of the Article 9 the Japanese administration is allowed to maintain forces used exclusively for self-defense within the Japanese borders. Only during his second term of office as a Prime Minister, he fulfilled those promises. In 2013 he established the National Security Strategy with National Security Council modeled after its American counterpart. Shortly after, the Japanese Parliament approved a controversial State Secrecy Law. Lastly, in July 2014 Abe’s Cabinet managed to approve the reinterpretation of article 9 allowing Self-Defense Forces (SDF) to exercise the right of collective self-defense, permitting SDF to exercise a military action in order to aid allies on their territory if they were to be attacked. With the upcoming Upper House Parliamentary Elections, a nationwide referendum to abolish the Article 9 of Constitution is not out of the question.