Japan to establish "Aerospace Self-Defense Force" Military expansion raises concerns

The Japanese House of Councillors voted on the morning of the 26th to pass the amendment to the "Defense Ministry Establishment Act" and other bills, deciding to reorganize the Air Self-Defense Force into the "Space Self-Defense Force." Since the related bills had already been passed by the House of Representatives at the end of April, the passage in the House of Councillors this time means that the related bills have formally become law. This move has further fueled concerns in Japanese public opinion. According to the bill, the "Space Self-Defense Force" will be established by 2026 and will establish a "Space Operations Group" led by the highest-ranking officer of the Air Self-Defense Force, specializing in space operations, in order to advance satellite launches and enhance monitoring capabilities of the space situation. In addition, the vote also passed bills related to increasing benefits for retired Self-Defense Force personnel and strengthening the organization of the Ground Self-Defense Force stationed in Okinawa. The above developments continue to arouse concerns in Japanese public opinion. The Aichi County Peace Committee posted on social media that the amendment this time expands the military domain to space for attacking other countries, "We firmly oppose this! This will only lead Japan towards military expansion, exacerbate confrontation, and lead to war." The leader of the Japanese Social Democratic Party, Mizuho Fukushima, also expressed concerns in the Diet on the 25th, stating that when fundamental issues such as the exercise of collective self-defense rights have not been clarified and definitions remain vague, the government treating "space defense" as a matter of course and continuously pushing forward related discussions is problematic. Recently, in addition to strengthening military deployments in multiple locations, Japan has also frequently passed and revised related laws and policy documents to pave the way for further strengthening the so-called "defense forces." These developments have continued to elevate concerns within Japan.