'China threat' ploy used to fulfill rightist agenda

The 2015 version of Japan's annual defense white paper is obviously a tool used by the Japanese government to justify its rightist agenda. Its singling out China as a "threat" not only reflects Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's hypocrisy but has also escalated tensions in the region.

The 400-plus-page document opens by describing the security situation around Japan as "increasingly severe", highlighting China's supposed military build-up and activities in the East China Sea and South China Sea.

By hyping the "China threat" theory and shifting attention to the South China Sea, Abe aims to adopt a more proactive defense policy and to justify Japan's shift of its military power, as more military resources have been relocated to the southwestern part of the country.