Abe's Normal Nation, US-Japan Strange Bedfellows

Abe's Normal Nation, US-Japan Strange Bedfellows
United Daily News editorial (Taipei, Taiwan, Republic of China)
A Translation
December 8, 2013

Summary: The purpose of Biden's trip to East Asia was to allow the US play the role of peacemaker. It was not to play with matches and intensify the conflict. Upon assuming power, Abe charged forward with his Great Power dream for Japan. But when he looks back, he finds himself fighting alone. The US and Japan are singing different tunes about the East China Sea ADIZ. That ought to be a warning to Japan.

Full text below:

Observers are concerned about heightened tensions in East Asia in the wake of Beijing's announcement of an East China Sea Air Defense Identification Zone (ADIZ). The Japanese government has cleverly exploited the situation. Both houses of parliament passed a "National Security Council Law" and "Special State Secrets Protection Act." The Abe regime is nominally promoting the "normalization of the nation." But is brazenly attempting hide in plain sight. By doing so, it is merely making Japan's East Asian ambitions increasingly clear.

First, it has established a "National Security Council." This has long been Abe's dream. The Abe regime longs to restore Japan's status as a great power. Rebuilding its security system is an important part of this ambition. Since Abe became prime minister in 2006, he has done everything possible to pass this law. But the Japanese public would not accept it. Now however, he has taken advantage of the East China Sea ADIZ to incite anti-Chinese hatred. He got the bill passed in one fell swoop. A National Security Council has been established. It has become Prime Minister Abe's political power center. Japan's security policy will be firmly in the hands of the Prime Minister, the Cabinet Chief, the Defense Minister, Foreign Minister, and four other policy making groups.

Secondly, he promoted the Special State Secrets Protection Act as a complement to the National Security Council Establishment Law. The Special State Secrets Protection Act enables Abe to use the National Security Council to classify information based on security policy. Without the cover of the Special Secrets Protection Act, the power of the National Security Council would be seriously undermined. No wonder Abe ignored intense public opposition within Japan. No wonder he risked having his public support fall below 50%. He rammed through the bill. Henceforth the policies developed by Japan's National Security Council are likely to become Special State Secrets. Parliament will not be able to review them. Japanese citizens will no longer be able to know what national security policy is.

Take Japanese society. The National Security Council Establishment Law and the Special State Secrets Protection Act are ostensibly part of the nation's "normalization." But the Japanese public sees them as very different. Establishing a National Security Council enables Japan to respond rapidly in the face of cross-departmental emergencies and to take any necessary measures. Establishing a National Security Council unifies the intelligence ministries, making it a single window that reports to the Prime Minister. This is a big step in the integration of intelligence and strategy.

By contrast, the Special State Secrets Protection Act has provoked intense public suspicion. The law lacks concrete definitions for confidential information. Yet it includes an extensive list of defense, diplomacy, counter espionage, and anti-terrorism items. It includes 23 specific secrets, including quantity of weapons, ammunition, and aircraft. The Japanese government can classify any intelligence unfavorable to it as confidential information. These are the main reasons 60% of the Japanese public opposes the act. Moreover, the Special State Secrets Protection Act concentrates all the information in hands of the Prime Minister and few others. This is a giant step backwards for Japanese democracy.

Take international society. When the Japanese government made significant modifications to defense policy in the past, it usually first sold the idea abroad, then adopted it back home. It cited changes in the international situation or demands by allies as excuses to demand parliamentary and public support. This time however, the Abe government cited demands by the United States as its trump card. It said the U.S. government repeatedly asked Japan to increase its intelligence security measures in order to enhance the sharing of intelligence. In fact, after Japan's National Security Council was established, the focus shifted to Sino-Japanese relations, the Diaoyutai Islands dispute, and defense issues. The highest priority was changes to collective defense and the establishment of new defense plans. The implementation of these has fallen well short of U.S. government expectations.

Take the United States. On the one hand it does not recognize Beijing's ADIZ. On the other hand it requires U.S. civilian aircraft to submit flight plans to the Chinese mainland. As we can see, the maintenance of stability in East Asia remains the first order of United States policy. Recently Xi Jinping met with U.S. Vice President Joe Biden. They said that despite their differences, they hoped to strengthen the new great power relationship between the US and China. Abe asked the US to demand that the Chinese mainland revoke its ADIZ. The United States turned Abe down. This shows that containing Japan's aggressive behavior is an important US consideration.

The purpose of Biden's trip to East Asia was to allow the US play the role of peacemaker. It was not to play with matches and intensify the conflict. Upon assuming power, Abe charged forward with his Great Power dream for Japan. But when he looks back, he finds himself fighting alone. The US and Japan are singing different tunes about the East China Sea ADIZ. That ought to be a warning to Japan.

安倍的正常國家，美日的同床異夢
【聯合報╱社論】
2013.12.08 04:18 am

就在外界關注中共東海防空識別區導致東亞局勢緊張之際，日本政府卻巧妙地借力使力，接連在參眾兩院通過「國家安全保障會議設置法」及「特定秘密保護法案」，為安倍政府推動「國家正常化」奠基。如此明修棧道、暗度陳倉的手法，只是使得日本在東亞逞強爭勝的司馬昭之心愈發顯得無可遮掩。

首先，成立「國家安全保障會議」一直是安倍個人所追求的夢想，也是安倍政府恢復大國榮光、重建安全保障體系的重要一環。安倍早在二○○六年的首次首相任內，便千方百計想要通過該法，卻未被當時的日本民意所接受；這次，他趁著東海防空識別區在日本掀起的強大反中氛圍，一舉通過了這項法案。「國安會」正式成立，安倍的首相府即成為強大的政治權力中心，而日本的安全保障政策也將牢牢地掌握在首相、內閣官房長官、防衛大臣及外務大臣等「四人決策小組」手中。

其次，制定「特定秘密保護法案」，就是「國安會設置法」的配套措施；透過「特定秘密保護法案」，便可輕易地將安倍主導的「國安會」所制定的安全保障政策訂為機密情報。若沒有「特定秘密保護法案」的支持，設立「國安會」的美意與成效便會大打折扣；這也難怪安倍會不顧日本輿論的強烈反對，甘冒民意支持度跌破五成的政治風險，強行通過這項法案。今後，日本「國安會」所制定的政策，都有可能化身變成特定機密情報，國會將無法對其進行實質審議，日本國民對於國家的安保政策方針也將逐漸喪失知的權利。

就日本社會而言，「國家安全保障會議設置法」及「特定秘密保護法案」兩法案雖是國家正常化路線的一體兩面，但日本人民對這兩項法案的感受卻大不相同。設立「國安會」，可讓日本面對緊急事態時快速做出跨部會的判斷，並迅速採取必要的處置；成立「國家安全保障局」，則可以統合各部會的情報，成為向首相報告的唯一窗口，這是跨出情報／戰略一體化的一大步。

相形之下，「特定秘密保護法案」卻招致社會強烈質疑。該法對於何謂「機密情報」缺乏具體定義，卻對國防、外交、反間諜及反恐等四大項目作了廣泛羅列，並將武器、彈藥及飛機數量等二十三項特定機密皆納入；除此之外，日本政府還可以隨時將不利於己的情報列為「機密情報」。這些，都是高達六成日本國民反對該法的主要原因。而且，「特定秘密保護法案」以中央集權方式將機密情報集中在首相等少數人手中，這不啻讓日本民主倒退了一大步。

從國際層面看，過去日本政府在修改或通過重大的防衛政策時，通常都會利用出口轉內銷，以國際情勢變化或是同盟國家要求為由，作為尋求國會及人民支持的藉口。這次，安倍政府也照例抬出美國當成「尚方寶劍」，稱美國政府一再要求日本能夠加強保護情資，以便雙方增進情報的交流及分享。事實上，日本「國安會」成立後，運作焦點卻集中在解決中日關係、島嶼爭議及強化離島防衛議題上，並以修改集體自衛權及訂定新防衛計畫大綱為優先課題。這些作法，皆與美國政府的期待有重大落差。

從美國一方面不承認中共劃定的東海防空識別區，一方面又要求美國籍民航機向中方提交飛航計畫，可見，維穩仍將是美國今後東亞政策的主軸。日前美國副總統拜登會見習近平時，兩人在識別區議題上雖有歧見，卻仍希望在美中「新型大國關係」上加強合作；同時，美國也拒絕安倍要求中國大陸撤銷防空識別區的提議。由此可見，如何牽制日本過激的行為，似已成為美國的重要考量。

拜登此次東亞之行，主要是想扮演和事佬，而非扮演激化衝突的火柴棒。安倍上台後，一逕戴著大國夢的鋼盔往前衝；但當他驀然回首，將會發現自己其實是在孤軍作戰。美日在東海防空識別區上的不同調，就是最好的警訊。