Japan Considers First Strike Against North Korea as Only Real Defense Against Nuclear Attack

North Korea appears determined to keep the world on edge with its incessant sabre-rattling. In recent years, that hostile talk has centered on the nation’s claim that it has become a nuclear power, capable of obliterating its enemies. That may be more or less true.

It’s clear that North Korea can create at least a crude nuclear bomb. It is not clear whether they can miniaturize it enough to put it on a missile. And as we’ve seen from their tests, it is not at all clear that they have a reliable delivery system for any such weapon.

Hitting the continental United States with a missile is probably outside North Korean capabilities, for now at least. Hitting Japan would not present a problem as recent missile tests demonstrated. Hence, the Japanese are concerned. And they are ready to act.

Rattled by North Korean military advances, influential Japanese lawmakers are pushing harder for Japan to develop the ability to strike preemptively at the missile facilities of its nuclear-armed neighbor.

Japan has so far avoided taking the controversial and costly step of acquiring bombers or weapons such as cruise missiles with enough range to strike other countries, relying instead on its U.S. ally to take the fight to its enemies.

But the growing threat posed by Pyongyang, including Monday’s simultaneous launch of four rockets, is adding weight to an argument that aiming for the archer rather than his arrows is a more effective defense.

In other words, Japanese leaders are wondering whether defending their nation by taking out North Korea’s military preemptively might make more sense than waiting for incoming North Korean missiles to shoot down.

For decades, Japan has been stretching the limits of its post-war, pacifist constitution. Successive governments have said Tokyo has the right to attack enemy bases overseas when the enemy’s intention to attack Japan is evident, the threat is imminent and there are no other defense options.

But while previous administrations shied away from acquiring the hardware to do so, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s LDP has been urging him to consider the step.

“It is time we acquired the capability,” said Hiroshi Imazu, the chairman of the LDP’s policy council on security. “I don’t know whether that would be with ballistic missiles, cruise missiles or even the F-35 (fighter bomber), but without a deterrence North Korea will see us as weak.”

Each time North Korea launches missiles that land near Japan, and each time they test a nuclear weapon, the impetus in Japan to acquire far more aggressive and effective weapons grows. It’s very understandable given the growing threat to their nation.

“We have already done the ground work on how we could acquire a strike capability,” said a source with knowledge of Japan’s military planning. He asked not to be identified because of the sensitivity of the issue.

Any weapon Japan acquired with the reach to hit North Korea would also put parts of China’s eastern seaboard within range of Japanese munitions for the first time. That would likely anger Beijing, which is strongly protesting the deployment of the advanced U.S. Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) anti-missile system in South Korea.

“China has missiles that can hit Japan, so any complaints it may have are not likely to garner much sympathy in the international community,” said Onodera.

The questions that Japanese leadership faces are not easy. They must consider whether any missile defense system they have or could acquire could react quickly enough to take out North Korean missiles. They also need to weigh the advantages of offensive weapons that could be used to retaliate against North Korea, or even conduct a preemptive attack if it is thought the North’s missile forces could overwhelm Japan’s ability to knock them down.

There are no easy answers to these questions. The ideal solution would be a reuniting of North and South Korea with the new state run by a peaceful and stable democratic government. Since that doesn’t look likely, Japan must consider its options carefully.

Source: Yahoo

Photo: ARTS_fox1fire