The reason why is that Japan really needs a full up military. WWII is long over, their restrictions are gone like Germany’s. Their economy almost demands that they need to support their own interests. If their political will continues as it has been and they allow the liberals to force out the US military presence, they need a capability to defend themselves autonomously. North Korea is specifically targeting them with threats because of Japan’s insistence that North Korea return the Japanese citizens they kidnapped. If the LDP continues with its agenda and wants to be free of the defense pact they have the USA, they will need to be able to defend themselves fully.

So the bottom line is your either all in or not.

Absolutely.

Having a Japanese Self-Defense Force by and of their own citizens relieves the US military from it’s former post WWII duty as a military force of occupation. We would still be occupying that country since 1945 if the Japanese military did not have it’s own self-defense force.

Having the Japanese nation pay its own share of their own self-defense saves us tax money and also assures the rest of the world that might become aggressive against Japan to “think twice” before invading Japan.

Best wishes,

Larry Smith
Senior Master Sergeant, USAF (Ret.)
First Sergeant