By Zhong Sheng

Recent pro-nuclear remarks by senior Japanese officials have drawn intense international attention. A senior official at the Prime Minister’s Office of Japan first claimed that Japan should possess nuclear weapons. This was followed by the Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary’s refusal to clarify the statement, while the Defense Minister publicly stated that revising the Three Non-Nuclear Principles was not off the table.

Such pro-nuclear rhetoric constitutes an open provocation against the postwar international order and the nuclear non-proliferation regime, once again exposing Japan’s accelerated “re-militarization” and posing a threat to regional and international peace and stability.

What do nuclear weapons mean for Japan? As the only country to have suffered nuclear attacks, Japan carries profound lessons about the catastrophic consequences of nuclear weapons. This historical experience should instill a unique understanding of their devastating impact.

The Three Non-Nuclear Principles—not possessing, not producing, and not allowing the introduction of nuclear weapons into Japanese territory—were formally adopted by the Japanese Diet as national policy in 1971. For decades, adherence to these principles has served as a critical measure of Japan’s genuine commitment to peaceful development in the eyes of the international community.

Paradoxically, certain right-wing politicians now view the Three Non-Nuclear Principles as obstacles. While actively promoting Japan’s identity as a “peace-loving nation” and advocating for global nuclear disarmament through narratives of nuclear victimhood, they simultaneously test international boundaries by seeking to abandon these very principles.

Since the formation of the Sanae Takaichi-led government, the pro-nuclear trend has become increasingly explicit: hints of abandoning the Three Non-Nuclear Principles, media reports of plans to revise the principle of not allowing the introduction of nuclear weapons, and now open clamor from figures close to the prime minister that Japan should possess nuclear weapons. Such fallacies by Japanese officials are clearly at odds with the peace-oriented ideals Japan proclaims to the outside world, once again laying bare Japan’s hypocritical stance on nuclear non-proliferation and nuclear disarmament.

The pro-nuclear remarks by Japanese officials also exposed their disregard for obligations under international law. According to internationally binding documents such as the Cairo Declaration, the Potsdam Proclamation, and the Japanese Instrument of Surrender, Japan is required to “be completely disarmed” and must not “maintain industries that would enable it to rearm”.

As a non-nuclear-weapon state party to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT), Japan must strictly abide by the provisions prohibiting the acceptance, manufacture, possession, and proliferation of nuclear weapons. Any pro-nuclear statements by Japanese officials constitute a challenge to the international nuclear non-proliferation regime.

These pro-nuclear remarks are not isolated incidents. In recent years, Japan has taken a series of steps to adjust its security policy, including loosening restrictions on the exercise of “collective self-defense,” expanding the scope of activities of the Self-Defense Forces, developing medium- and long-range offensive weapons, increasing troop deployments, and restructuring command systems.

Since taking office, the Takaichi administration has hyped up so-called “survival-threatening situations” and peddled security anxiety to accelerate military expansion and force buildup, achieving two years ahead of schedule the target of spending 2 percent of GDP on defense. It has also claimed that the introduction of nuclear-powered submarines is not ruled out, while taking frequent actions such as relaxing restrictions on arms exports, strengthening “extended deterrence,” advancing revisions to the three national security documents, including the National Security Strategy, and discussing changes to the Three Non-Nuclear Principles.

Taken together with the recent nuclear-related remarks, these developments indicate that Japan’s right-wing forces—deeply dissatisfied with postwar international arrangements—are eager to break free from existing constraints and return to the old and misguided path of military expansion.

Japan is widely regarded by experts as a “threshold nuclear state,” having already mastered key technologies and materials required to manufacture nuclear weapons, and having long produced and stockpiled plutonium far in excess of civilian nuclear energy needs. Precisely for this reason, any loosening of Japan’s nuclear policy would have a severe impact on the regional security landscape and would also create serious security dilemmas for Japan itself.

Recently, many rational voices in Japan have stressed the need for the country to uphold the Three Non-Nuclear Principles. Former Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba stated that possessing nuclear weapons would by no means be beneficial for Japan, and Former Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda called for the swift replacement of officials who advocate Japan’s possession of nuclear weapons. The Hiroshima Prefectural Assembly unanimously adopted a statement urging the Japanese government to adhere to the Three Non-Nuclear Principles.

The international nuclear non-proliferation regime is an important pillar of the postwar international order. Firmly safeguarding this regime is tantamount to protecting the hard-won outcomes of victory in World War II. China will work with all peace-loving countries to remain highly vigilant against Japan’s dangerous moves on the nuclear issue and resolutely prevent the resurgence of militarism in Japan.

(Zhong Sheng is a pen name often used by People’s Daily to express its views on foreign policy and international affairs.)

Source: People’s Daily