As part of growing tensions between the United States and China, Gen. Mark Milley, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, has praised Japan’s public commitment to nearly double its defence spending over the next 5 years.
The government of Prime Minister Fumio Kishida is finalizing a revision of its national security strategy which would allow Japan to carry out a pre-emptive strike, a massive change from Japan’s position since the end of the Second World War, which has kept the country largely demilitarized and limited to entirely defensive actions.
With fears that China may be tempted to take military action against Taiwan as part of efforts to forcibly integrate the de-facto independent country into China, the US is looking to its allies in the region to boost their defence spending in the hopes it will deter China.