US Pressure Driving Expansion of Japanese Defense Forces - Activist

Yukiko Senzaki, Japanese anti-war activist, said that the US "overstepped" Article 9 of the Japanese Constitution, which constrains the country's military to defense only.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) — Pressure from the United States is fueling the expansion of Japan's Self-Defense Forces (SDF) military capabilities, an anti-war activist told Sputnik Japan on Tuesday.

Yukiko Senzaki, whose anti-war petition seeks to gain a million signatures, says the US "overstepped" Article 9 of the Japanese Constitution, which constrains the country's military to defense only.

"Japan has cited the 9th Article as grounds for denial. However, as dependence on the US grows, the likelihood of Japan acceding to US demands grows as well," Senzaki told Sputnik Japan.

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has vowed to support new security legislation, debated in the Japanese Parliament, which removes a number of restrictions on the military. Japanese lawmakers are expected to pass the new bill by August, amid increasing regional tensions.

"In other words, the Abe government itself seeks to push the limits of Self-Defense Forces' activities using US pressure as an excuse. I can see the implications clearly," Senzaki told Sputnik Japan.

Nearly seven decades after outlawing war as a means of settling international disputes, Tokyo reinterpreted Article 9 in the summer of 2014. The new government measure extended SDF powers by allowing them to support Japan's allies in the case of an officially declared war.