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The , or JSDF, are the Military Forces in Japan that were established after the end of the post- World War II American Occupation Of Japan . For most of the post-war period the forces were confined to the islands of Japan and not permitted to be deployed abroad. In recent years, they have been engaged in international Peacekeeping operations.1 Recent tensions, particularly with North Korea 2 and China ,3 have reignited the debate over the status of the SDF and its relation to society.4 PERSONNEL AND ORGANIZATION The JSDF numbered 239,430 In 2005 with 147,737 in the Ground Self-Defense Force, 44,327 in the Maritime Self-Defense Force, 45,517 in the Air Self-Defense Force, and 1,849 in the Joint Staff Office. Reserves numbered 57,899.5 .]] Chain of Command Operational
Administrative
Military branches
Military units
Based on the Self-Defense Forces Law of 1954, the nation's defense establishment is organized to ensure civilian control of the armed forces. The result has been a unique military system. All SDF personnel are technically civilians: those in uniform are classified as special civil servants and are subordinate to the ordinary civil servants who run the Ministry of Defense. There are no military secrets, military laws, or offenses committed by military personnel; whether on-base or off-base, on-duty or off-duty, of a military or non-military nature, are all adjudicated under normal procedures by civil courts in appropriate jurisdictions. DEFENSE POLICY See Also: National security of Japan Japan's Basic Policy for National Defense stipulates the following policies:6 # Maintaining an exclusive Defense oriented policy. # To avoid becoming a major military power that might pose a threat to the world. # Refraining from the development of Nuclear Weapons , and to refuse to allow nuclear weapons inside Japanese territory. # Ensuring civilian control of the military. # Maintaining security arrangements with the United States . # Building up defensive capabilities within moderate limits. Japan's USD $44.3 billion/year Budget makes it the fifth largest military spender in the world, after the United States , Germany , United Kingdom and France . About 50% of that is spent on the personnel and the rest is split on supplies, new weapons, upgrades, etc. 7 Reflecting a tension concerning the Forces' legal status, the Japanese term 軍 (pronunciation: ''gun''), referring to a military or armed force, and the English terms "military", "army", "navy", and "air force" are never used in official references to the JSDF. Article 9 In theory, Japan's rearmament is thoroughly prohibited by Article 9 of the Japanese Constitution which not only states, ''"The Japanese people forever renounce war as a sovereign right of the nation and the threat or use of force as means of settling international disputes",'' but also declares, ''"land, sea, and air forces, as well as other war potential, will never be maintained."'' In practice, however, the Diet (or Parliament) which Article 41 of the Constitution defines as "the highest organ of the state power", established the Self-Defense Forces in 1954. Due to such a constitutional tension concerning the Forces' status, any attempt at enhancing the Forces' capabilities and budget tends to be politically controversial. Thus the JSDF has very limited capabilities to operate overseas, lacks long range offensive capabilities such as long-range Surface-to-surface Missile s, air-refueling ( As Of 2004 ), Marines , Amphibious Units , or large caches of ammunitions. The Rules Of Engagement are strictly defined by the Self-Defence Forces Act 1954. Recent reforms and developments |
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