Japan creates ominous council

On Dec 4, 2013, Japan officially established its National Security Council, tasked with devising and strengthening the country's foreign and defense strategies. Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has said the NSC will enable the government to make strategic decisions on security and diplomacy to suit prevailing situations.

Different from Japan's previous security council that comprised nine ministers, the NSC has a framework under which the prime minister, foreign and defense ministers, and the chief cabinet secretary will meet once every fortnight to discuss security issues. The NSC's 60-member National Security Bureau, to be set up as part of the cabinet secretariat, will focus mainly on strategic coordination with its allies and friendly countries, strategic containment of China and the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, gathering information and centralizing strategic decisions.

The Abe government submitted the bill to set up a US-style security council in parliament on June 7, and the Upper House of the parliament approved it on Nov 27. A similar bill tabled in the parliament during Abe's first term as prime minister was dropped after he resigned in September 2007 after being in office for one year. Abe finally got the parliament to approve the establishment of the NSC in his second term.

The NSC will not only influence the diplomatic and strategic decision-making process of Japan, but also play a vital role in the security situation in the Asia-Pacific region.

First, the fortnightly meetings among the prime minister, foreign and defense ministers, and the chief cabinet secretary will make the role of the prime minister's office more important in foreign and defense policy matters and thus boost Abe's powers. Second, the NSC can help the Japanese government centralize information gathering and expedite the decision-making process in response to emergencies. And third, by labeling China and the DPRK as its "adversaries", Japan could create instability and heighten uncertainties in an already volatile East Asia.

The Abe cabinet is hell-bent on amending Japan's pacifist Constitution to clear the way for military buildup, and it is deliberately intensifying tensions in the region to fulfill this goal. But its provocative remarks and actions will not help its efforts to become a "normal country".