NEW YORK TIMES: …With a quarter of a million uniformed personnel, Japan has slowly built up a military larger than that of other midlevel powers like France or Israel, though still far smaller than the 2.3 million-strong People’s Liberation Army in China…
Defense analysts and American commanders agree that Japan’s strongest asset is its Maritime Self-Defense Force, or MSDF, widely regarded as the world’s second-most capable navy after the United States’s. With a tradition dating back to Japan’s formidable wartime fleet, and top hardware like the Aegis radar system, the Japanese have the only naval force, except perhaps Britain’s, with the ability to work so fully and seamlessly with the United States fleet, American commanders say.
This was apparent during naval war games in November involving almost 30 Japanese and American warships. As the huge American aircraft carrier George Washington launched F-18 jets, its closest escort was the Japanese guided-missile destroyer Kirishima. For the first time during such a complex exercise, a Japanese admiral was in charge of both navies’ defense against simulated seaborne attacks… (more)
EDITOR: Japan need not match China’s military. Japan need only be a valuable ally for the USA. The capacities of Japan and Viet Nam greatly strengthen our presence in the region. Tiny Singapore with a potent modern submarine force also is a potential asset.
It is vitally important that we maintain a balance of allied forces to counter China.
Japan could have an even larger military had it not been saddled with having to buy over-priced and difficult to maintain American weapon systems. Seems to me it is more about ensuring sales to American weapons industries than whether Japan can be a strong military ally of the U.S.
Another contradiction is the continuing occupation of Japan with U.S. forces and it is said it is to ensure Japan’s protection but again Japan is saddled with paying much of the costs of the U.S. occupation forces. The U.S. is bankrupt and I guess our goal is to bankrupt Japan too.
Why not withdraw our forces, let Japan develop their own weapons and provide for their own defense?