Japan labels China's naval a universal concern

[Amberjean]

TOKYO (AFP) Japan on Friday labelled the military build-up of antagonist China a universal "concern" and said it would strengthen missile defences against the threat from North Korea, as chapter of a major strategic review.

The changes would also penetrate Tokyo boost its southern forces and submarine fleet and upgrade its fighter jets as part of a shift in its defence focus from the Soviet Cold War threat to southern islands nearer China.

The cabinet of officially pacifist Japan accepted the National Defence Programme Guidelines months after a territorial row flared up with China and weeks after North Korea launched a lethal artillery buffet against South Korea.

Beijing cried Japan's stance "irresponsible".

"No country has the right to designate themselves the representative of the international community and make irresponsible remarks on China's development," Chinese foreign department spokeswoman Jiang Yu said in a expression.

The new guidelines labelled North Korea -- which in recent years has fired missiles over Japan, staged two nuclear tests and last month disclosed a new uranium enrichment factory -- one "urgent, grave factor for instability".

Japan, like its top security ally the United States, repeatedly voiced concern over China's recent military build-up and additional assertiveness in what Beijing sees as its ancestral waters in the East China and South China seas.

"China is rapidly modernising its military force and expanding activities in its neighbouring waters," said the guidelines.

"Together with the lack of transparency on China's military and security issues, the trend is a concern for the region and the international community," said the paper, which sets out strategic planning for the coming decade.

Security analyst Akira Kato, a instructor at Tokyo's Oberlin University, said "the guidelines underline Japan's remove shift of converge to counteracting China's growing military power, which is a major threat to Japan and the United States."

Japan will increase its submarine fleet from 16 to 22 and modernise its soldier jets, but scrap more than 200 tanks and 200 artillery pieces, it said.

It too maneuvers to twice from 3 to 6 its land-based Patriot Advanced Capability-3 interceptor missile systems, and boost from four to 6 the digit of sea-based Standard Missile-3 interceptors ashore its Aegis destroyers.

Pledging a extra nimble defence skill, it said: "We ambition create a dynamic defence compel backed along sophisticated technologies and comprehension, with readiness, mobility, flexibility, sustainability and multiple disciplines."

The perspective pushes away from the perceived Cold War threat of a Soviet aggression and calls for drawing down troop strength on northern Hokkaido island.

Instead it says Japan will boost its ground, climate and naval forces on the far-southern Nansei islands that take in Okinawa, a major bottom for US forces, and are closer to remote flashpoint isles approach Taiwan.

The guidelines called the Japan-US alliance "indispensable".

They also mention Japan will promote security ties with South Korea, Australia, Southeast Asia and India and "enhance confidence and cooperation with China and Russia" meantime also enhancing ties with the European Union and NATO.

The defence guidelines are ordinarily altered each 5 years but came a year late emulating Japan's 2009 power shift in which the centre-left Democratic Party ended a half-century of about unbroken conservative rule.
Japan's new chairmen initially quarrelled with the United States about the 50,000-strong US crew presence in the nation -- but that row subsided as tensions grew sharply this year between Tokyo and Beijing.
The eastern monsters discussed early in the year over what Japan regarded as aggressive Chinese naval manoeuvres off its far-southern islands.
Then in September, the war of words escalated when Japan's coastguard caught a Chinese trawler skipper later two collisions in disputed waters, a row that for months plunged diplomatic ties apt their lowest point in years.
"Regarding China ... annually its defence ration has increased in a non-transparent style and we have capable multiple locations in 1 year over which we had to lodge protests," said top government talker Yoshito Sengoku. "These are materials of concerns to us."
Regional tensions spiked again after North Korea's November 23 shelling that killed four South Koreans. China has since then resisted calls by the United States, South Korea and Japan to publicly condemn its ally North Korea.

[mmm]

Was this translated? Anyway, Japan is an invaluable ally. I hope that they can keep North Korea in check until leaders with sanity control the nation. China, I'm not as worried about. Sure, they have no respect for anyone besides themselves (just the rich actually), but they won't be the cause of a nuclear winter.