Spokesperson criticizes Japan’s Constitutional revision as a move toward remilitarization

A Chinese defense spokesperson criticized the Japanese government's push to revise its Constitution, describing it as an attempt to cloak its remilitarization ambitions under a "hypocritical rule-of-law pretext" on Tuesday.

Jiang Bin, spokesperson for China's Ministry of National Defense, made these remarks in response to recent comments by Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi.

According to the Japanese newspaper The Asahi Shimbun, Takaichi stated in a Feb 2 speech: "Why can't we write the Self-Defense Forces into the Constitution? ... I want you to let us revise the Constitution to position them as an effective organization."

Jiang argued that Japan has long used "constitutional reinterpretation" to repeatedly break through the principle of exclusive defense and lift restrictions on the exercise of the right to collective self-defense. He accused Tokyo of vigorously developing offensive weapons and equipment under the guise of "defense", dressing up its remilitarization drive with a hypocritical "rule-of-law" veneer.

Jiang further accused Japan of openly seeking to enshrine the Self-Defense Forces in the Constitution.

"This is not about improving the law," he said, noting that it is about hollowing out the foundations of the pacifist constitution, pursuing military expansion, and attempting to return to the path of militarism.

"All signs show that Japan's right-wing forces are painstakingly working from multiple fronts — military, public opinion, and legal — to challenge the post-war international order," Jiang stated. He said the international community should remain highly vigilant and firmly curb such moves, advocating for collective efforts to safeguard the outcomes of victory in World War II as well as regional peace and stability.