n°173 November 2014 OCEANS AND GEOPOLITICS THE JAPANESE SELF-DEFENSE MARITIME FORCE : « QUO NON ASCENDET ? » 1 On November 10, the Chinese president and the Japanese prime minister held talks outside of the AsiaPacific economic cooperation forum. During the...
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n°173 November 2014 OCEANS AND GEOPOLITICS THE JAPANESE SELF-DEFENSE MARITIME FORCE : « QUO NON ASCENDET ? » 1 On November 10, the Chinese president and the Japanese prime minister held talks outside of the AsiaPacific economic cooperation forum. During the meeting, Xi Jinping and Shinzo Abe pledged to control tensions in the East China Sea and to prevent escalation to military confrontation. However, this does not prevent Japan from continuing to develop its Maritime Self-Defense Force (JMSDF). Ranked fourth in terms of tonnage, JMSDF can now deploy a large enough fleet to enter the closed circle of navies capable of operating across the globe. THE PRINCIPLE OF ''ACTIVE PACIFISM” Considered a founding element of Japanese post war democracy, Article 9 of the Constitution states that the country forever renounce armed intervention. But this article involves more than just limiting the offensive capabilities of the country: it is the basis for eased relations between the countries affect
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