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| Is Japanese militarism on the rise again? |
paraclete |
02/24/07 |
Let's face it folks to we have more to fear from a resurgent Japan than from Iran or North Korea. What purpose can Japan have for spying on the rest of the world?
Japan completes set of spy satellites
From correspondents in Tokyo
February 24, 2007 06:31pm
JAPAN launched its fourth spy satellite today, improving its ability to monitor potential threats including North Korea, whose missile and nuclear tests have spooked the region.
An H-2A rocket, delayed three times by bad weather, finally lifted off from the southern island of Tanegashima, carrying a radar satellite that will join two optical satellites and another radar satellite already in operation.
With the full complement of four satellites, Japan will be able to monitor any point on Earth once a day, government officials have said.
Japan's spy satellite program was initiated after North Korea launched a ballistic missile in 1998 that flew over Japan.
The program was delayed in 2003 when a rocket carrying two satellites veered off course and had to be destroyed in a spectacular fireball.
North Korea ratcheted up regional tensions last year when it conducted a nuclear test in October after a salvo of missile tests in July.
In January, China destroyed one of its own satellites by firing a ballistic missile at it, in an experiment that sparked criticism around the world.
Japan's space scientists have long complained that the country's technical prowess has fallen behind because of a 1969 parliamentary resolution limiting the use of space to peaceful purposes.
Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's ruling Liberal Democratic Party is likely to soon submit a bill that would ease regulations and allow non-aggressive military use of space.
The rocket launched today was also carrying an experimental optical satellite, aimed at improving the level of detail obtained from the next generation of satellites.
At present, Japan's satellites can distinguish objects a metre or more in diameter, whereas US military satellites are said to be able to do so for items one-tenth as large.
Copyright 2007 News Limited. All times AEDT (GMT +11).
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Clarification/Follow-up by tomder55 on 02/24/07 11:37 pm:
forgot to identify N Korea as the belligerent nation . Really; Japan is only trying to do their part in their defense.
Clarification/Follow-up by ETWolverine on 02/27/07 3:05 pm:
Elliot
First of all, is North Korea the only country in the world hostile to Japan? Not hardly. There's China, for one. And there have been Islamic attacks on Japan as well in recent years. So keeping an eye on all the possible enemies makes perfect sense.
Second, Japan is an ally in the War on Terror. Furthermore, just because a country is not an enemy today doesn't mean that it won't be tomorrow. Every country in the world keeps an eye on its allies AND its enemies. Keeping an eye on your allies allows you to be sure that they are remaining allies. And occasionally, a foreign intel source obtains information about things happening inside a particular country that that countries officials didn't pick up on, so it ends up being a double-check.
And finally, it is the job of every government to try to get as much information about potential threats as possible... which means that it is their job to spy on everyone else in order to obtain as much information as possible, while at the same time making sure others get as little information as possible about them. This is part of the responsibilities of governments to protect their citizens. That's what they were put in power for in the first place... to protect their citizens from internal and external threat.
One more point: 4 satellites doesn't exactly give them the power to spy on "the whole world". We have a lot more satellites than that floating around up in orbit, and WE don't even have reliable global coverage.
So again... do you really see Japan as more of a global threat because it has 4 spy satellites than Iran with nuclear weapons and a stated (not implied, not hinted, actually stated) intent to use them?
Elliot
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