Remembering victory, guarding peace: Japan's remilitarization raises concerns

China on Thursday marked the 81st anniversary of the victory of the Chinese People's War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression and the World Anti-Fascist War.

The date carries profound historical significance. On August 15, 1945, Japan announced its unconditional surrender. On September 2, it formally signed the Instrument of Surrender aboard the USS Missouri in Tokyo Bay, bringing World War II to an end in the Asia-Pacific. China designated September 3 as Victory Day to commemorate its victory in the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression.

The Chinese People's War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression was an important part of the World Anti-Fascist War. On the main Eastern battlefield, Chinese soldiers and civilians made enormous sacrifices and tied down a large proportion of Japan's ground forces, creating strategic space and valuable time for the Allied war effort.

The postwar international order also established a legal framework for addressing the legacy of aggression. The Cairo Declaration, the Potsdam Proclamation and other international documents affirmed key principles of the postwar settlement, including Japan's surrender and the restoration of territories seized through aggression.

Eighty-one years later, however, the effort to uphold historical justice and prevent the distortion of wartime history remains unfinished, as Japan's security and defense policies undergo profound changes.

Japan's steady push beyond postwar restraints

In recent years, Japan's defense spending has continued to rise, while its security policies have gradually moved beyond the traditional framework of postwar military restraint.

The trend has accelerated under Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi. In April, the Japanese government further relaxed restrictions on overseas arms transfers, in principle allowing exports across all categories of defense equipment, including finished products.

For the fiscal year 2027, Japan's Defense Ministry plans to request a record-high defense budget of about 8.9 trillion yen ($56 billion), Japanese media reported in August. The final figure could be even higher.

Japan's 2026 Defense White Paper, released in August, further underscored what Tokyo describes as an increasingly severe security environment. It highlights such areas as "new forms of warfare" and the strengthening of Japan's defense production and technological base.

At the same time, Japan is expanding what some observers describe as "defense diplomacy," using security partnerships, military cooperation and arms transfers as increasingly important tools of its foreign policy.

Xiang Haoyu, an expert at the Department for Asia-Pacific Studies of the China Institute of International Studies, said these moves suggest that Japan is seeking to acquire full-fledged warfighting rights and long-range strike capabilities in the short term, become a major arms exporter and expand its global military influence in the medium term, and ultimately move beyond its status as a defeated nation and reshape the post-World War II international order.

Lessons of history cannot be forgotten

Japan's shift is not limited to military policy. Its approach to wartime history has also drawn growing attention.

In August, Takaichi avoided explicit references to "reflection" and "lessons" regarding Japan's wartime aggression at the National Memorial Ceremony for the War Dead. She also made a monetary offering to Yasukuni war shrine, which honors convicted Japanese war criminals.

At the ceremony marking the 81st anniversary of the atomic bombing of Hiroshima, Takaichi also refrained from saying whether her government would continue to uphold Japan's Three Non-Nuclear Principles.

Meanwhile, a proposed revision to explanatory texts at the Nagasaki Atomic Bomb Museum has drawn attention after reports that references to the "Nanjing Massacre" would be changed to "Nanjing Incident" from March next year.

These developments warrant particular attention this year, which also marks the 80th anniversary of the opening of the International Military Tribunal for the Far East, commonly known as the Tokyo Trial. The trial was part of the postwar effort to hold Japan's wartime leaders accountable for aggression and other international crimes.

Xiang said the combination of the Takaichi administration's denial or downplaying of Japan's history of aggression and its accelerating military expansion bears certain similarities to the path that contributed to the rise of Japanese militarism in the 1930s. "If left unchecked, this dangerous course could have serious, even catastrophic, consequences for the Asia-Pacific region and the wider world once again," Xiang said.

Wang Yichen, an associate research fellow at the Institute of Japanese Studies at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, stressed the importance of preserving historical memory. "Historical memory is not about remaining trapped in the past. It is a safeguard for anchoring the future," Wang said. 

Wang also called for vigilance against what he described as the Takaichi administration's dangerous moves, saying the international community should work together to curb Japan's remilitarization.