How will new government deal with military budget?

Japan Press Weekly

Japan Press Service Co., Ltd. is the only news agency providing information of progressive, democratic movements in Japan

How will new government deal with military budget?

The Defense Ministry's budget request for FY 2010, submitted on August 31 to the Finance Ministry, demands that military expenditures be excluded from cuts.

This demand is based on the policy of the present government under the Liberal Democratic and Komei parties, which suffered a crushing defeat in the August 30 House of Representatives general election.

Public attention will be focused on how a new government led by the Democratic Party of Japan will deal with the issue of military spending.

The Defense Ministry is requesting a budget of 4.9 trillion yen, a 3 percent increase from the current fiscal year.

It includes the highest amount of funding for the Missile Defense program, construction of Japan's third helicopter carrier and purchase of other equipment for overseas dispatch of the Self-Defense Forces, and costs for U.S. forces realignment plans, including "relocation" of a part of the U.S. Marines from Okinawa to Guam.

The Defense Ministry in a document attached to the budget request stated the need for more military equipment in order to respond to changes in the international situation, including North Korea's missile launch, modernization of other countries' naval and air forces, and developments in military technology.

The DPJ has indicated that the new government will drastically revise the budget request, as its leader Hatoyama Yukio said on August 31 that it "should be fundamentally changed."

Amid Japan's economic crisis and citizens' worsening livelihoods, will a DPJ-led government accept the military budget as requested by the Defense Ministry? Or will it cut spending on what used to be excluded from budget cuts as called for by the JCP during the general election campaign so that more tax money can be used to improve people's living conditions and social services?

- Akahata, September 2, 2009