Okinawa: How Japan is preparing for conflict with China | Inside Asian Conflicts

80 years since the end of World War II, Japan is ramping up defense spending and moving military assets to southwestern islands closer to Taiwan. The shift in Japan’s strategy comes amidst recognition in Tokyo that it may need to contend with a more assertive China. Japanese officials have sought in recent years to prepare for more military action despite constitutional limits and a pacifist tradition since 1945. The island of Okinawa, which hosts a massive US military presence, is at the center of Japan’s new strategy. Japanese defense planning is preparing for a possible Chinese invasion of Taiwan should Beijing follow through on its threats to use force to bring the self-governing island under its control. Some islands now with outposts from Japan's Self Defense Forces are just over 100 kilometers from Taiwan. Increasingly it looks as if a conflict over Taiwan would involve Japan one way or the other. How do islanders view these preparations and the increased military activity. DW’s Inside Asian Conflict series looks at how Japan is preparing for conflict.

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