In the overall conservative political atmosphere in Japan, disapproval of amending the constitution, military expansion and stationing troops overseas is fading.

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has led his faction in trying to whitewash imperial Japan's history of invading others. This reflects the cabinet's intention to build up the military in preparation for potential contentions with China over the Diaoyu Islands.

Abe's attempt to whitewash history

[By Jiao Haiyang/China.org.cn]

During a House of Representative Budget Committee session this March, Abe overly criticized the Tokyo War Crimes Tribunal, claiming it was "no more than exercises in victors' justice." He also said the evaluation of history should better be left to historians.

In his earlier book "Towards a Beautiful Country," Abe questioned the legal basis for the Tokyo Trials, saying there were "misunderstandings about Class A Japanese war criminals, because Japan's domestic laws do not have such charge." He added there were no "criminals in that war."

Abe's stance has been a serious challenge to the rulings of the Tokyo Trials, and a blatant provocation to the post-WWII international order. Abe's political aspirations represent an inter-partisan desire to break away from the binding post war political system in order to "normalize the country."

It is fair to say that the conservatives in Japanese politics want to restore the country's shattered confidence due to WWII defeat.

Since assuming the top government post again in December of last year, Abe has repeatedly advocated his fallacious historical outlook, intending to restore the external functions Japan was deprived of after WWII.

Speeding up the process of becoming a major political and military power

In 2007 when Abe became prime minister for the first time, he intended to bring forward legislation for a "National Security Council (NSC)," a plan which failed because of his short-lived first term. When assuming the top governmental post again, he could not wait to establish the agency, which marked the fulfillment of his political desire.

Japanese domestic critics argued that the NSC would give the prime minister great power to use the military at will. The NSC is reminiscent of Japan's militaristic past, and has raised concern in neighboring countries about whether Japan will repeat its invading history.