탈냉전기 일본 방위정책 결정과정에 있어서의변화와 그 중요성

Abstract

Variables at the structural level such as the end of Cold War and the U.S. pressure have the limited utility in explaining Japan’s defense policy of the latter part of the 1990s. Even though change in the U.S. strategy has been the primary factor affecting Japan’s defense policy in the same period, it is not a sufficient condition to consider in explaining the changes that have occurred since the 1980s. We need to figure out the domestic political background of Japan in order to understand the dynamics of its defense policy in the future. This study focuses on the significant changes and efforts at the levels of institution, the political process, and political leadership. At the institutional level, political reform in electoral system is realized. The first general election of 1996 under the new electoral system marked the emergence of the “1996 party system” and the disappearance of eological division between the LDP and the JSP. Diet members of LDP are trying to propose to the Diet the promotion of the JDA to the level of Defense Ministry. At the process level, expansion of the role of politicians over the bureaucrats, the introduction of the Intelligence Headquarter and the increasing importance of technical advise of SDF in U.S.-Japan cooperation, forecast the policy changes in the future. Prime Ministers also displayed strong initiatives in pursuing active defense reforms. This study reveals that changes in the pacifist norm and public opinion in defense matters are within arm’s reach, which will be realized in the revision of Constitution.