Meanwhile, serious discussion has begun about easing Japan's strict constitutional restrictions on using military force. Japan's Parliament recently voted to restore official status to the country's old Rising Sun flag and former national anthem. Both long predate World War II, and for all but a handful of right-wingers, their revival represents a return to tradition, not to imperial ambitions. North Korea is the immediate source of Japan's defense anxieties. Last year Pyongyang fired a medium-range missile over Japanese airspace without advance warning, exposing Japan's vulnerability to missile attack.
Japanese leaders are also uneasy about China.
For decades, Tokyo has sought friendly relations and economic cooperation with Beijing. But China has recently seemed less receptive to Japanese overtures and has stirred new worries with its own missile testing and warlike talk about Taiwan. Japan is the world's second-largest economic power, and nobody should expect it to remain aloof to matters involving its own defense. As Tokyo starts finding its way to a new military role, it must continue coordinating its defense policies closely with Washington.