Axis Redux

Beware of Japan! And Germany!

In 1940, the imperial regimes of both of these two countries (as well as Italy) joined what would be known as the Axis powers, bound by a shared desire for territorial expansion and imperial supremacy. 

They fought a world war, and they lost it, and their populations spent the next 85 years with shrunken militaries and a heavy reliance on their former enemy, America, for security. 

Now, both countries are moving to reduce their reliance on US security guarantees and are accelerating efforts to bolster their own defense capabilities. And, once again, they are strengthening ties. 

Their cooperation is expected to gather momentum at the meeting of the leaders of the Group of 7 (G7) in Évian-les-Bains, France, taking place now. It already includes sharing know-how, technology and weapons, like drones and helicopters, critical to the countries’ respective efforts to rearm. 

In a few years, Germany’s military spending could be larger than that of France and Britain – combined. Japan commits half as much as Germany, but it is still one of the world’s top spenders on defense, with a budget this year of about $58 billion. 

Already, Germany has forged close ties with Ukraine in developing and deploying new weapons and has asked France to help provide it with a nuclear deterrent. 

Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi, who won office last year with nationalist calls to revive the military, has deployed long-range missiles – capable of reaching China – in southern Japan, and has reversed postwar bans on arms exports. The country recently sealed a $6.5 billion deal to supply warships to Australia, and it is in talks with the Philippines and Indonesia about exporting warships. 

Make no mistake, this is an Axis redux – as both countries enthusiastically embrace the ambition to reassert their dominance. Indeed, Germany and Japan are primed and eager to unleash their military might once more.

And the US is encouraging the two countries – but they have to be stopped before they start getting ideas and threaten the world! 

Methinks, Japan should confront its wartime legacy and seek genuine reconciliation with the countries it once invaded. It should also respect the postwar international framework and the spirit of its pacifist constitution instead of pursuing belligerent strategies.