Japan's FY 2005 National Defense Program Outline: New Concepts, Old Compromises. Asia-Pacific Center for Security Studies, Volume 4, Number 3, March 2005.
Abstract
Japan's FY 2005 National Defense Program Outline (NDPO) represents a significant alteration of Japanese defense strategy. The new NDPO extends the "Basic Defense Force Concept" of earlier postwar defense program outlines by identifying international peacekeeping activities and counterterrorism as primary components of Japan's overall national defense strategy. The FY 2005 NDPO also breaks precedent by identifying China and North Korea as security concerns. The new NDPO emphasizes Japan's need to deal effectively with ballistic missile and guerrilla attacks, along with maintaining the ability to respond to invasions of Japanese islands and intrusions into Japan's airspace and territorial waters. In order to carry out these newly defined roles Japan seeks to create a "multifunctional" military capability. The new plan calls for streamlining the Self Defense Force (SDF) by centralizing command, upgrading intelligence and communications functions, and also includes the creation of a rapid reaction force in order to respond to new threats such as terrorism. While breaking new ground, the FY 2005 NDPO is clearly the outcome of a series of political compromises that demonstrate the continued sensitivity of defense policy formation in postwar Japan.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Mar 01, 2005
- Accession Number
- ADA495831
Entities
People
- David Fouse
Organizations
- Asia-Pacific Center for Security Studies