Japan promises a "drastic reform" to strengthen defense before Trump's visit

Japan's new Defense Minister, Shinjiro Koizumi, promised this Wednesday a "drastic reform" to strengthen the defense capabilities of the Asian country, statements that take place before the arrival this Monday of US President Donald Trump. "We are carrying out a drastic reform to strengthen defense, necessary in the current security environment," Koizumi said in his first press conference as Defense Minister, a day after the newly elected Japanese Prime Minister, Sanae Takaichi, received the positive vote from Parliament. However, Koizumi declined to specify a percentage of the gross domestic product to which Japanese defense spending could be raised.

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"It's not about the amount of money or how much it represents of the gross domestic product, but about the content of the defense forces," the minister said, practically repeating word for word statements hours earlier by Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi. The statement comes on the same day that Takaichi's Executive confirmed that Trump will visit Japan between next Monday and October 29, as part of an official three-day visit in which he plans to meet with the leader of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP). Washington has repeatedly urged Tokyo to increase its military spending, and in 2022 the Asian country decided to double its annual defense budget to 2 percent of GDP by 2027. This represents the largest rearmament of the Asian country since the end of World War II and includes the acquisition of "counterattack capabilities" such as hypersonic or long-range missiles, to directly attack enemy territory in case of a direct threat to its security. This is a drastic change in its post-war security policy framed in its pacifist Constitution, which Koizumi justifies by the "strengthening of the defense and facilities" of neighboring countries, but the increase is not enough for the American president. The Trump Administration's ambition is also for Japan to pay more for the maintenance of the U.S. troops stationed in the archipelago.