By Wu Minwen

Japan's Ministry of Defense released the 2026 edition of its Defense White Paper on August 4. As the first report of its kind issued under the administration of Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi, it comes as the United States adjusts its military strategy and places greater "responsibility" on its regional allies, drawing considerable attention from various quarters.

Since becoming Japan's first female prime minister on October 21, 2025, Sanae Takaichi has pursued radical defense and foreign policies, particularly through bold moves toward Japan's "remilitarization" and the revival of "militarism". The new Defense White Paper reflects the defense policy of the Takaichi administration.

The Defense White Paper is Japan's authoritative annual document on security and defense affairs. The latest edition runs to 598 pages, making it the longest on record. The new Defense White Paper claims that the international community is entering "a new era of crisis" and that the "security environment in the Indo-Pacific region is increasingly severe". It also hypes the claim that Chinese aircraft carriers are expanding into the Pacific, bolstering China's operational capabilities in more distant seas and airspace, and therefore describes China as an "unprecedented and the greatest strategic challenge". The new Defense White Paper thus clearly targets China in its assessment of the security situation and identification of threats.

In addition, the new Defense White Paper emphasizes enhancing defense industrial capabilities and expanding arms exports. While previous editions included content on defense production and technological research in other sections, the new edition devotes a separate chapter to the subject for the first time, demonstrating the importance the Takaichi administration attaches to this area and underscoring the Japanese government's emphasis on defense-related R&D. By strengthening the development and production of weapons and equipment and using arms exports to form cliques, the Japanese government seeks to strengthen its military ties with countries in the region and beyond and enhance Japan's international standing.

In recent years, as Japan has played an increasingly prominent role within the US-Japan alliance framework, its annual Defense White Paper has also carried far-greater implications.

First, it paves the way for the revision of Japan's "Three Security Documents" by the end of the year. The three documents were last revised at the end of 2022.As they cover a longer policy horizon and carry higher authority, they are also more influential. The 2022 revisions laid the groundwork for Japan's Ministry of Defense to develop its cyber, space, and intelligent unmanned forces and strengthen its intelligence capabilities.

Second, it lays the groundwork in public opinion for Japan's "remilitarization" and the revival of "militarism". To serve the needs of right-wing Japanese politicians seeking to advance "remilitarization", Japan's Ministry of Defense has published a children's version of the Defense White Paper annually since 2021. Starting in 2025, it began printing physical copies and sending them to elementary schools across the country, bringing the Japanese government's indoctrination on "remilitarization" directly onto school campuses and planting the notion of an "external threat" in the subconscious minds of children who are not yet mature. The 2026 edition goes even further, featuring anime-style imagery on its cover to hype the "external threat", propagate "militarist" ideas, sow hatred, and manipulate perceptions.

Third, Japan's departure from its "exclusively defense-oriented" policy will poison geopolitical relations and jeopardize regional peace. As a defeated country in World War II, Japan should abide by its pacifist Constitution, comply with international law, and safeguard regional peace. Yet Japan's hyping of "external threats", particularly its characterization of China as an "unprecedented and the greatest strategic challenge", undoubtedly reflects a misguided perception and constitutes a dangerous provocation. It moves to develop the so-called "seven capabilities" and make "stand-off defense capabilities" a "key capability" are, in essence, a departure from the basic principle of an "exclusively defense-oriented" policy.

Japan's new Defense White Paper advocates the development of long-range offensive capabilities and "emerging modes of warfare", and even packages the expansion of the defense industry as a new source of economic growth, once again exposing the falsehood of Japan's claim to be a "peace-loving nation". The international community must remain highly vigilant and resolutely curb such moves.

Editor's Note: Originally published on zqb.cyol.com, this article is translated from Chinese into English and edited by the China Military Online. The information and opinions in this article do not necessarily reflect the views of eng.chinamil.com.cn.