Japan Strikes Combat Role in South China Sea in Post-War Pivot

Japanese troops take part in a counter-landing live fire exercise as part of the annual Balikatan joint military drills on May 4. Photographer: Ezra Acayan/Getty Images Photo by Ezra Acayan /Getty Images

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(Bloomberg) — Japan’s decision to send combat troops to the Philippines for the first time since World War II and participate in a ship-sinking drill in the South China Sea this week underscores Tokyo’s rising willingness to project military power on China’s doorstep. 

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Along with US and Philippine forces, the Japanese military fired missiles in a practice sinking of a mock enemy ship off the northern Philippines’ Ilocos Norte on Wednesday.

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The exercise is one of the highlights of the annual US-Philippine combat drills — known as Balikatan, or “shoulder to shoulder” — with Tokyo participating in a combat role for the first time. 

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This year’s Balikatan, which ends Friday, was joined by a record of more than 17,000 troops from seven nations. Japan is deploying 1,400 troops, making it the war games’ third-largest contingent.

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For decades, Japan has restricted most of its military training to its own territory or in far flung locations such as the US and Australia. The Type-88 missiles Japan used on Wednesday were first tested on its northern island of Hokkaido last year. 

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But since coming to power last year, Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi has shown a greater willingness than her recent predecessors not to be intimidated by Beijing. Her suggestion in November that Japanese troops could be deployed if Beijing tries to seize Taiwan through military force infuriated China, which has accused her administration of pursuing “neomilitarism.”

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Japan has also recently scrapped most restrictions around the sale of military hardware and Takaichi has signaled a softening of its anti-nuclear weapon principals, which have also drawn rebukes from China.

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Many of the component parts of Balikatan that Japan has been involved in – from maritime strikes to amphibious operations to missile defense – would be important in a potential conflict over Taiwan, said Naoko Aoki, an East Asian security specialist at the RAND Corporation.

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“To China, it is a demonstration of stronger cooperation between Japan and its defense partners as well as Japan’s increased combat readiness,” she said.

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China has been critical of the drills. The deputy spokesperson of its Manila Embassy posted on Facebook Sunday: “The region needs peace and stability, not bloc politics. Outsourcing security to external powers rarely ends well — it usually backfires.”

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Shared concerns over China have drawn Manila and Tokyo together. The deployment of Japanese troops for Balikatan was made easier by an agreement that entered into force between Japan and the Philippines last year removing legal hurdles to military exchanges.

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Takaichi is also keen to show the US that Japan is a more valuable military partner amid criticism from the Trump administration about allies’ over-reliance on the US. Some security experts see a direct link from Balikatan to support for American forces deployed to the Middle East, including warships and troops sent from bases in Japan.