But I believe the threat is serious and particularly the missile threat. We are talking about essentially the first country in the third world, and one that is implacably hostile to the United States, really being able to reach United States territory with a weapon of mass destruction. The last five years have seen Japan really waking up to new circumstances. Formerly economically dominant in the region, envied and feared, the Japanese see themselves as struggling with their own economy. China has had the strong growth in this period.
China has the expansive military modernization program.
And they see the rivalry between the two as becoming disadvantageous to Japan over the long term. This has led, on the one hand, to a strengthening of the bilateral U.S. relationship with Japan. They need that anchor outside the region for their own security and stability. It has led to an outsized reaction to what North Korea did when it fired the missile. The administration has portrayed the choice as essentially blackmail or war.