PM Ishiba Calls for Properly Examining Why Japan Entered WWII at Tokyo Symposium

By Takeshi Kuroiwa / Japan News Staff Writer

13:59 JST, January 30, 2025

Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba stressed the importance of examining World War II at a symposium held in Tokyo on Wednesday, as this year marks the 80th anniversary of the end of the war.

“I think it is necessary to properly examine why we entered that war and why we couldn’t stop the war earlier,” Ishiba said at the 6th Tokyo Global Dialogue.

As the number of Japanese with direct experience of the war is getting smaller, Ishiba said, “I think that if we miss this opportunity, we will never be able to examine the war.”

Ishiba also stressed the importance of peace. The theme of the symposium was “A Quest for Global Resilience.”

Earlier in the symposium, Estonia’s defense minister stressed the need to increase defense readiness as Russia’s aggression against Ukraine continues.

“Authoritarian regimes are on their way, attempting to disrupt the international system by force,” Estonian Defense Minister Hanno Pevkur said in his remarks at the symposium.

“As a minister of defense of a country bordering an aggressive neighbor, it is part of my job” to describe the threat from Russia, Pevkur said. “We cannot afford to sit back and hope for a change.” He stressed the need to “increase our defense readiness as fast as possible and stand firmly for democracy in the world.”

Experts on international relations also discussed how to deal with the new administration of U.S. President Donald Trump.

In opening remarks, Kenichiro Sasae, president of the Japan Institute of International Affairs, which organized the event, emphasized the importance of collaboration among liberal democratic countries in light of concerns that the Trump administration could negatively affect international order based on law.

Sasae said, “If the countries of the free democratic camp turn against each other, who will benefit?” Sasae, a former Japanese ambassador to the United States, added: “It is not that U.S. allies and partners should take over the various roles played by the United States. They should be shared among those countries.”

In the second Trump administration, it is expected that Trump and his Cabinet will take a hardline stance towards China.

In a panel discussion at the symposium, Patrick Cronin, Asia-Pacific Security Chair of the Hudson Institute, said that Trump is not afraid of taking risks. “He wants to find some new trade bargain with China,” Cronin said. “He is willing to threaten significant tariffs.”

Regarding fear that U.S.-China relations would deteriorate, Ke Long, senior fellow of the Tokyo Foundation for Policy Research, noted that there has been a major change in Japan-China relations.

However, Ke said that when U.S.-China relations become unstable, Japan-China relations improve. Conversely, when U.S.-China relations become stable, Japan-China relations worsen.

“There is a very high possibility that Japan-China relations will improve at least for the rest of this year,” Ke said.