I would like tentatively to share the insights of Mr. Yoshihisa Komori, Advisor to the Japan Forum for Strategic Studies and Distinguished Professor at Reitaku University.
His theme is “Flaws in the "against war" argument in Japan.”
One of the most conspicuous reactions to the war in Ukraine in Japan has been the "opposition to the war".
This is not surprising.
However, even such a well-known writer as Haruki Murakami has come out against the war in Ukraine.
But this slogan "against war" is seriously flawed.
If one were to trace the origin of the "opposition to war" in Japan, one would run into the Japanese Constitution.
This is because Article 9 of the Japanese Constitution forbids Japan from waging war, denies the right of belligerency, and prohibits the retention of war potential.
Therefore, the quintessence of the Japanese Constitution is that the country of Japan, as a nation and as a people, is forbidden to engage in any form of warfare.
This concept of "opposition to war" is accompanied by the word "peace".
The idea is to stop war for the sake of peace, and that peace is the highest ideal for mankind, or for human beings.
In today's Japan, people like Haruki Murakami would apply such Japanese standards to Ukraine and cry "no war".
But wait a minute !
If we ordered Ukraine to "oppose the war," in other words, to stop fighting, it would be tantamount to ordering Ukrainian citizens and soldiers, who are risking their lives for the defense of their country, to stop resisting Russia.
Essentially, what the world is opposed to in Ukraine today is not the war itself, but Russian aggression or invasion.
