Across the ideological spectrum, a consensus is emerging: Fumio Kishida is unlikely to last another year as prime minister, and even now, he is only lingering on because no credible and attractive alternative has appeared.
Recent polling indicates that supporters of the US Democratic Party are now far more likely to support an interminable war in Ukraine than either Republicans or independents.
Somalia’s internationally-recognized government has once again appealed for the removal of the UN weapons embargo, citing the urgent need for weaponry and supplies to counter the Al-Shabab insurgency.
Unable to reconcile the demands of its US security alliance with its long-stated diplomatic position in support of international law, the Japanese government has opted to pretend that it doesn’t really know what is happening in the Gaza Strip.
The US political and media establishment is beginning to wake up to the fact that, having lost the Iraq War and the Afghanistan War, it is now on the path toward losing its proxy war in Ukraine as well.
Exclusionary businesses have a long history in Japan, and people seem to be forgetting it. Here’s a reminder from somebody who has studied them more than anybody.
Japan plans to massively increase its defense budget over the next four years, climbing into the ranks of the highest-funded national militaries. Depending on developments–and future currency exchange rates–there is even the possibility that Japan could soon rank as the No. 3 military in the world as measured by its budget.
Thousands gathered in Berlin late last month to demand Germany pursue peace talks with Russia over Ukraine. Reaction to the “Revolt for Peace” rally, organized by outspoken leftwing politician Sahra Wagenknecht, has exposed deep divisions within the German left on diplomatic policies.
US economic sanctions on Russia and Iran have pushed the two countries closer by supplying them with a common need for security policy cooperation as well as trading opportunities outside of Western markets. The two nations are looking for new opportunities to work together, and one result is an Iranian military drone factory being built inside Russia.
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.
