[Tintin Storm]

According to the Japanese government, changes in the constitutional order have long been ripe in the Land of the Rising Sun. Slowly but surely, Tokyo is promoting the idea of reforming Article 9 of the Constitution. Moreover, now there is a good reason for such a step - a threat in the face of the DPRK. Tokyo may try to annul the restrictions imposed on the country after the defeat in the Second World War.
Article 9 of the Constitution, which proclaimed Japan's refusal to create land forces, navy and air forces in 1947, is now more of a formality. Gradually departing from the principles laid down in Article 9 of the Constitution, Japan still managed to form own army. Now the Japanese Self-Defense Forces occupy the 7th place in the world, located between Great Britain and Turkey. Gradually, despite a number of restrictions placed on the Japanese military forces by law, the Self-Defense Forces of this country are all given greater powers. Created in 1954 with the help of the allied forces of the United States, the Self-Defense Forces are already participating in UN peacekeeping operations since the beginning of the 1990s. In the 2000s, the contingent of the Japanese Self-Defense Forces carried out logistical support to the coalition forces in Iraq and Afghanistan. In autumn 2015, the Self-Defense Forces of Japan were given the opportunity to participate in US combat operations.
In recent years, Japan's military budget has increased significantly and in 2017, it amounted to 44.64 billion dollars. In addition, recently Japan equips its troops with the latest types of weapons, for example, anaerobic diesel-electric submarines of the Soryu class, approaching the nuclear submarine characteristics. In 2018, Tokyo plans to buy long-range JASSM-ER and LRASM rockets of air-to-ground and air-sea class, the use of which calls into question the exclusively defensive function of the Japanese Self-Defense Forces.
Thus, from the legal point of view, Tokyo has long violated Article 9 of the Constitution, according to which the country should not have an army. Now, the Japanese government is trying in every possible way to smooth out legal contradictions, including through the exaggeration of the North Korean threat.
Therefore, Tokyo jointly with the United States and South Korea conducted joint exercises to counter the DPRK on December 11, 2017. Pyongyang regards as provocative such regular exercises. The Japanese government also announced the possible evacuation of its citizens from Korea in connection with the crisis on Korean Peninsula.
In May 2017, Shinzo Abe announced the need for changes in the legislative system. According to the Japanese prime minister, the year of the Olympiad is a good time for the re-birth of the country. According to analysts, the timing is not accidental: the 2018 elections will allow the Prime Minister of Japan to strengthen his position as a leader, because Shinzo Abe will have to win 2/3 of votes in the parliament to make changes to the Basic Law and then hold a nationwide referendum. Shinzo Abe will be able to prepare the necessary transformations for two years. Thus, the issue of amending Article 9 of the Constitution is a matter of time.