By Song Pengchao
According to foreign media reports, the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force (JMSDF) began its nearly 5-month-long Indo-Pacific Deployment operation on April 20. The operation involved about 1,190 personnel, including one submarine unit and three surface units. The Indo-Pacific Deployment began in 2017 and was officially named in 2019. This year marks the seventh Indo-Pacific Deployment and it will be the largest to date as it includes visits to multiple Pacific island countries and participation in various naval joint exercises. What are the noteworthy and alarming aspects of Japan's unprecedentedly large-scale cruise this time?
Military observer Du Wenlong pointed out that this operation has set all-time records in terms of duration, countries to be visited, number of personnel, and equipment mobilized. We should be wary of Japan using this opportunity to strengthen its capability to conduct far-sea offensive operations. The deployment lasts for five months, which means that Japan is using long-distance voyages to conduct far-sea offensive combat exercises. Based on the composition of the JMSDF's fleet formation, its goal is to form an overseas offensive formation consisting of various types of ships for attack, defense and support.
Du further pointed out that Japan is trying to use this voyage to further test the feasibility of overseas deployment of its latest offensive weapons and equipment. If Japan's newly refitted Izumo-class destroyer is equipped with vertical take-off and landing fighter jets, it will become a real aircraft carrier. This is the first long voyage of Izumo-class destroyer after the refit, and Japan is trying to test its capabilities through long-term overseas deployment. Japan also urgently needs to know the performance of its ships in long overseas deployment.
With Pacific Island countries as its focus in this operation, the JMSDF will visit 17 countries and regions. Among them, Kiribati is included for the first time, and the Solomon Islands, Tonga, and Fiji are selected again after 2022. Du analyzed that Japan is currently collaborating with the US to strengthen its military deployment in Pacific Island countries in order to advance the US Indo-Pacific strategy. If Japan and the US station their combat forces in the form of garrisons in Pacific Island countries, these countries will become operational bases for the US and Japan, and the distribution of such bases in the Pacific Ocean will present a situation of multiple points and wide areas.
He said that the US has previously conducted "distributed maritime operations" and believes that the deployment relying on large US bases faces unprecedented threats in the context of major power competition. Dispersed bases on these small countries, once tactically integrated, can also form a strong comprehensive operational capability.
The Japanese side claimed that the operation aims to promote "regional peace and stability." However, Du believes that this is just a whitewash for Japan's ambition to accelerate the military "normalization". This operation by Japan will have a serious negative impact on the regional security situation. "Long-term deployment means that this fleet is not performing tactical tasks, but strategic ones," said Du. Japan's real goal is to demonstrate its military strength through concrete actions. This indicates that Japan's capability to intervene in regional affairs in the Pacific is increasing and its military ties with the US are deepening.
Editor's note: Originally published on cnr.cn, 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.
