Future of the JSDF

My WPR column this week is on the future of the JSDF:

The improved experience and capabilities of the JSDF hardly make up for the damage inflicted by the Tohoku quake and tsunami. However, Japan remains in a unique position to take advantage of the growing demand for "soft power" military operations. The constitutional prohibition against offensive operations and offensive weapons creates the opportunity to focus training and procurement around non-offensive tasks. Discomfort with offensive operations also makes possible the encouragement of a military culture focused on operations other than war. Although a "pacifist military" is a contradiction in terms, military organizations can vary in terms of their comfort with "hard" and "soft" defense tasks, and Japan's is more at ease with the latter. Finally, the deployment of the JSDF in relief and peacekeeping functions fits well with an image of Japan as a good international "citizen." A well-maintained global commons benefits Japan enormously, due to its global trade profile, and the sense that Japan is doing its fair share to contribute is an easy sell to both domestic and international audiences.