Pushing Japan to remilitarize was never, and still is not, a good idea. This is not just because an arms race in Asia is the last thing the region needs. But also because Japan, consistently unable to face up to its own history, is simply not the country to represent the world’s liberal democracies in Asia, especially as a military power.
Kurt Campbell, White House Coordinator for Indo-Pacific Affairs, has indicated that Washington is keen to see India diversify away from its “reliance” on Russian military supplies, while another State Department official highlighted the potential threat to the subcontinent posed by China.
Economic sanctions and corporate boycotts have not caused the rapid collapse of the Russian economy, as some Western commentators had hoped. Sanctions are, however, pressuring economic lifelines for the Russian people and forcing Moscow to embrace Eurasian ties.
Japan is beginning construction today, January 12, of a new base intended to be used primarily by the US military on the uninhabited island of Mageshima in Kagoshima Prefecture, despite years of resistance to the controversial plan and a questionable process by which the island was acquired by the government.
Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen has announced the extension of the military draft to one year from the current duration of four months, citing the perceived need for increased military preparedness.
The antiviral drug Avigan was developed by the firm Fujifilm Toyama Chemical in 2014, and it was later envisioned as Japan’s leading prospect to solve the global Covid pandemic. The drug was enthusiastically promoted by former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, but this October its development was quietly terminated.
The Kishida government has declared that all Japan taxpayers have a “responsibility” to support its policy of dramatically increasing military expenditures, accepting the premise that Japan’s neighbors are likely to launch an armed attack unless deterred from doing so. This marks the effective end of “New Capitalism.”
China announced a series of new import bans on Taiwanese products late last week, primarily seafood and beverages, in what appears to be the mainland’s latest effort at applying economic pressure.
The US House of Representatives passed a mammoth US$858 billion military spending bill, putting the US budget for weapons and war-making higher than the next nine countries combined. Also attached to the bill was unprecedented US taxpayer funding for Taiwan’s military.
Lam Wing-Kee, the only one of the Hong Kong Causeway Bay booksellers to remain free, applied for permanent residency in Taiwan last month on the basis of being a professional in arts and culture. While there is a good chance that his application will be accepted, some other Hongkongers are finding greater difficulty.
