Rearming Japan
Abstract
Japan accounts for over 10 percent of the world's Gross National Product (GNP). It has the second largest economy in the non-Communist world and runs up huge trade surpluses in its commerce with the United States and Western Europe. Conversely, Japan spends just slightly over 1 percent of its GNP on defense, indicating to many in the United States and Western Europe that Japan is enjoying a free ride and waxing rich under American military protection. While the United States and its European allies welcome Japan's insistence that it should be counted as a member of the Western camp, they ask whether such professions can be taken seriously when Japan is so obviously not shouldering its fair share of the common defense. But the economic strength vs. defense disparity and the complex problems of rearming Japan lose all superficial aspects of mere monetary adjustment when contrasted from within Japan and the Asian-Pacific region. The purpose of this paper is to show that Japan continues to rearm, and why she must rearm. It explains why this must be a slow process for the Japanese and the region, and demonstrates that Japan shares more of the defense burden than is popularly believed.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Apr 10, 1989
- Accession Number
- ADA436610
Entities
People
- Howard Sidman
Organizations
- National War College