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The lessons learned during the traumatic experience of the Second
World War and the preceding years were so overwhelming to the Japanese
people that these lessons have since determined the basic thrust of
Japan's foreign policy. That is to say, throughout the post-war years,
Japan's external policy has been motivated by a doubt regarding the
wisdom of the preponderance of military power.
In the
Today, some countries point to Japan's "resurgence of militarism"
out of malice and some fear it out of lack of understanding.
absence of drastic and fundamental changes in the world situation, there
will be no resurgence of Japanese militarism. For, the Japanese people
are deeply convinced of the futility of military hegemony, especially
in the age of interdependence.
The great majority of Japanese see the necessity of maintaining
defense capabilities on a minimum scale to protect Japan. They realize
that the interdependence of nations cannot eradicate power politics in
world affairs in the near future. They feel, however, that history
points to the direction in which at some time in the distant future
military confrontation will be replaced by economic interdependence
and that Japan should play a role as a promoter of interdependence.
Let me now turn to Japan's Asian and Pacific policy. First, I
would like to touch upon how we look at the Asian and Pacific region
today.
Historically, Asia has been associated with poverty, social back-
wardness and political instability as well as military confrontation.
The two largest military conflicts since the Second World War were
fought on Asian soil. Asia, however, has witnessed a very basic
transformation during the decade of the 1970s. Military tensions still
exist on the Korean Peninsula and in Indochina. The Soviet naval and
And yet, overall
other military build-up in Asia has been conspicuous.
military tensions in Asia have diminished since the fall of Saigon in
1975.