The US and Japan must make clear that China’s provocative behavior in the East China Sea over the last six months is unacceptable, while highlighting China’s obligation to help to rein in North Korea’s nuclear program. If this demonstration of shared values and resolve does not alter China’s behavior, a wider conversation would inevitably begin in Japan about the potential revision of Article 9 of the 1947 Constitution, which essentially denies Japan the ability to maintain armed forces like most other “normal” countries.
美日必须明确指出过去6个月中国在东海的挑衅行为不可接受，并强调中国在遏制朝鲜核计划中应当承担的责任。如果中国的所作所为并未因明确共同价值观和决心而有所改变，那么修订1947年宪法第9条的潜在对话将不可避免地在日本国内大规模展开，从根本上允许日本向其他多数“正常”国家那样保有军队。