TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Japan was reluctant to intervene on the side of the United States if China attacked Taiwan, the Wall Street Journal reported Saturday (July 15).
While military officials from the U.S. and Japan have cooperated for more than a year on plans to address such a military confrontation, Tokyo was not eager to commit its troops, according to the newspaper’s Asia security writer, Japan-based Alastair Gale. The Pentagon reportedly wanted Japan’s military to perform tasks such as hunting down Chinese submarines near Taiwan.
In the event of an attack by China, the U.S. would most likely mobilize its 54,000 U.S. troops in Japan’s Okinawa. At the closest point, Japan only lies 110 kilometers from Taiwan.
According to a simulation by the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) last January, the U.S. would need the assistance of Japan to win a war against China. If the Chinese tried to destroy the U.S. bases in Okinawa, Japan’s military would strike back, attack Chinese naval ships north and east of Taiwan, and intercept amphibious vehicles, the CSIS study said.
However, Japan feared that if it became involved in an armed conflict around Taiwan, it might face attacks by Russia and North Korea. The threat of a nuclear war might also become a possibility, the report said.