Japan advisers say U.S.-bound missiles should be hit

Reuters ^ | jpn_us_alliance

[us_jpn_alliance]

TOKYO (Reuters) - Japan should be prepared to shoot down ballistic missiles bound for the United States although this would relax its self-imposed ban on collective self-defense, or aiding an ally under attack, government advisers said on Friday.

North Korea, which launched a Taepodong ballistic missile in 1998 that overflew Japan, is believed to have missiles capable of reaching the United States, Japan's closest security ally.

Washington has made clear it would welcome an end to the collective self-defense ban.

"There was overall consensus that it is absurd to have a legal system where Japan can't do anything," said Shinichi Kitaoka, a Tokyo University professor on a government panel considering the issue.

"There was no objection to the idea that we should intercept," Kyodo news agency quoted him as saying.

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has made rewriting Japan's post-World War Two pacifist constitution a key goal. But as doing so will take several years at least, he wants to find ways to further loosen the limits of the U.S.-drafted charter even before it can be amended.

"Should the United States suffer damage from a ballistic missile, it would seriously influence the defense of our own nation," Abe was quoted as saying at the start of the meeting.

The panel of advisers is to issue recommendations in the autumn.

Article 9 of Japan's constitution renounces the right to wage war and forbids the maintenance of a military. Successive governments have interpreted this as allowing a military solely for self-defense, but banning those forces from aiding an ally.

Under that interpretation, Tokyo could not use a planned U.S.-Japan missile defense system to shoot down missiles headed for U.S. territory.

Panel members have said deployment of this system, introduction of which was hastened after Pyongyang launched a barrage of missiles last July, made it urgent to ease the ban.

[HiTech RedNeck]

welcome to fr

[VR-21]

Works for me.

[VR-21]

And my welcome to you also.

[VR-21]

Your FR nickname is consistant with the subject of your post. Could you tell us something more about you.

[AfterManyASummer]

Welcome to FR!

[ARE SOLE]

Thats downright neighborly.

Regards

[A message]

I favor our strong ties with our Japanese neighbors. Japan’s willingness to maintain mutual defense interests with the U.S. is warmly appreciated.

[piasa]

ping

[sourcery]

United we stand. Divided we fall.

[SaltyJoe]

Missile skeet, Japan style.

[VR-21]

That’s a remarkable pic. What’s the story behind it?

[TigerLikesRooster]

N. Korean missiles are the easiest to shoot down. It may have range but employ no evasive countermeasures.

Unwittingly, N. Korea is helping MD supporters.

[SaltyJoe]

I wanted a good picture to show how blasting things out of the sky is not just a joy among American rednecks (or “wood boogers” for those up further North), but has universal appeal.

Judging from their riotous and intricate game shows like Extreme Elimination and Ninja Challenge, perhaps the techno saavy Japanese lack the hypo-sophistication of potato-gun ingenuity simple happiness (and other sources of entertainment like using a baseball throwing machine to launch flaming gasoline soaked tennis balls across a baseball field). So, I googled “missile skeet” and looked for an appropriate image to describe how our friends, the Japanese, like to turn it up a knotch for one-ups-manship in having fun blowing things up, yet remaining noble in such a pursuit.

The picture posted is what I found.

Maybe when other nations have a 2nd Ammendment like ours, they’ll have more “Bubba, hold my beer and video camera and watch this” fun...and we’d seen the clips on youtube.

[Polybius]

"Should the United States suffer damage from a ballistic missile, it would seriously influence the defense of our own nation,"

And all the nuclear fallout on Japan from the mushroom clouds in North Korea would be a bummer too.

[us_jpn_alliance]

thanks! look forward to posting cool articles.

[us_jpn_alliance]

i’m japanese-american. i like to see the US & Japan get along for mutual benefit.

[us_jpn_alliance]

thanks!

[us_jpn_alliance]

that is one cool-ass pic!

[VR-21]

"i like to see the US & Japan get along for mutual benefit."

It's good to know that people in your country feel that way. There are terrible storms gathering over the horizon I fear, and we will need each other to get through them.

Again, we welcome you to Free Republic and hope to hear from you often.