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The Ukraine War and Okinawa (13)
-Feasible international cooperation for Japan-
Every day, Russian troops' atrocities against Ukrainian innocent people are reported on television. Many people must be impatient as to whether Japan can make a positive contribution to the realization of an early ceasefire. When considering further contributions, we need to reaffirm the basic stance Japan has to observe. We are not allowed to provide military assistance or military intervention to a third country under the Constitution of Japan which was put into effect as a result of the acceptance of the Potsdam Declaration and of the capitulation.
Japan can provide the non-military measures such as humanitarian assistance and economic sanctions against Russia in cooperation with democratic countries like G7 and EU member countries. Japan all the more needs to promote high-quality assistance and international cooperation measures.
The current international community does not have a clear-cut grouping of countries, such as the former Allied and Axis sides, the Western democratic camp and the Soviet Eastern European socialist camp. Especially with regard to economic relations, global interdependence is rapidly progressing that makes more difficult for grouping the countries from the ideological point of views.
President Biden has been endeavoring to reshape the world between democracies and authoritarian countries. However, before a tangible fruit was harvested, as early as February 24, Russia launched the military invasion against its neighboring Ukraine. In addition, atrocities by the Russian troops have been increasing. Against this background the three way grouping of democracies, Russia and its allies, and authoritarian nations is temporarily obvious in the international society. The United Nations system, which was created in the wake of World War II, is facing a major crisis.
Discussions have begun on the "new international order" in anticipation of the post-War in Ukraine, but I hasten to say that the creation of a new global security system that can replace the United Nations is lacking in reality. There is no real option other than to restore the UN to its pre-War state in Ukraine even if World War III could be avoided. Japan, in particular, is neither a member of NATO and the EU, nor is directly involved in the Ukraine war. Jumping on the conclusion, Japan at most can seek to realize a "Russia without Putin" by peaceful means that was discussed in the last issue of my blog.
Meanwhile the critics in Japan must take into their full attention the following points.
First, they need to examine how far Japan could carry out international cooperation in the field of economic sanctions. They have to recognize that in the middle of the Ukraine war Russia's gas pipeline with Europe is kept under normal operation throughout the Ukrainian territory, and that OPEC members do not (or cannot) try to increase oil production. As a result, Russia is not suffering from a shortage of foreign currencies. However, if the EU decides to stop importing energy resources from Russia in the future, Japan will have to consider seriously the continuous purchase of natural gas from Sakhalin 2. If Japan consider it utmost to prevent the collapse of the UNITED NATIONS regime, she must opt for stopping the gas purchase from Russia.
One military expert in Japan says on the brutality of Russian soldiers who are likely to violate international humanitarian law, that people will sooner or later become accustomed to the continuous brutality if they see a similar situation every day. We have to admit this as a sad human character. In order to avoid stepping into this trap it is imperative for Japanese to continuously beat their brains out on how to bring about a ceasefire → truce → peace process by peaceful means.
One diplomatic commentator says that the Japanese government, especially the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, is not making enough serious diplomatic efforts to bring to a ceasefire, and hints as if the Ministry should mediate trying not to give Ukraine the full score. I think this is a comment that does not correctly understand what is happening in Ukraine now. This is a classic war between Russia invading Ukraine and Ukraine defending her homeland. It will only please Putin if Japan makes a proposal like "pain division" while the one-sided Russian invasion continues.
Japan is geographically far from Europe, but she should not respond sweetly to Russia, which has two faces, Asia and Europe. The Government of Japan must not relax its vigilance against Russia, which has been occupying the Northern Territories unlawfully and continues to engage in military provocations around Japan. The Japanese people should continue to let their government actively cooperate with President Zelensky. Don't let Ukraine limp.
One diplomatic commentator also said that in order to achieve an early ceasefire, a referendum should be proposed as soon as possible. This is a debate that seems to be based on Putin's premise of holding a fair referendum in the Donbass region. However, it is an illusion. Even if a referendum is held in the future, it must be only after the situation in Ukraine be changed from a ceasefire to a truce at least which will agree with a fair referendum among others.
One former general of Self Defense Forces of Japan keeps saying that it is unlikely that the senior Russian officials he knows order the civilian killings around Kyiv (Kiev) and in the Donbass region. However, it is not clear whether the FSB are carrying out the killing of Ukrainian civilians. The general is free to guess that there may be a draft between Putin and the Red Army, but he should also realize that his comment without hard evidence could mislead the public.
One Ukrainian expert explains that what is unfolding in Ukraine now is a proxy war between Russia and the United States. I think this is not just a misuse of the term "proxy war", but
a comment that can put water on the support of Ukraine from NATO, the EU, Japan and other democracies.
The other day a broadcaster interviewed the Russian ambassador to Japan and covered the atrocities committed by the Russian military. The mission of the newscaster is to ask appropriate questions and draw out the other person's true intentions, but contrarily he developed an emotional discussion and easily fell into the Russian ambassador's strategy to miss each other. With regard to the War in Ukraine, especially those responsible for editing television coverage, it is necessary to devise ways to ensure that the overall situation is communicated correctly to the public. Compared to CNN and the BBC, I can't help but notice the shortcomings of the Japanese press.
All in all, the general public, experts and media professionals should join together in working out hard to identify the ideal way Japan should pursue for international cooperation.