Publication

This Issue Brief assesses Abe's national security goals and the hurdles the new prime minister will face in achieving his agenda. The rise of many nationalists to parliament in combination with China's intrusion of Japan's air space and North Korea's launch of a long-range rocket have pushed security to the top of the political agenda. The LDP is using its electoral victory as an opportunity to augment Japan's military capability. It seeks to revise the Constitution to create a national military and provide the Japanese defence force with the right to exercise "collective self-defense." However, the LDP's pacifist ally, the New Komeito, remains opposed to Abe's agenda.