Japan’s plan to bring back WWII military titles sparks debate

Japan’s ruling coalition government’s plan to bring back military titles once used by its armed forces before and during the Second World War has sparked a debate over the country’s postwar pacifist identity.

Since the SDF’s creation in 1954, Japan deliberately adopted rank names that distanced the modern force from the imperial military. Terms such as “issa” (first field officer) replaced older titles like “taisa” (colonel), reflecting the country’s postwar pacifist identity.

Although English translations already match global standards, the plan’s proponents believe restoring traditional Japanese terminology would strengthen morale and signal recognition of the SDF as a legitimate “national defence force”, The Asahi Shimbun reported last week.

The proposal reportedly emerged from an agreement between the ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) and its coalition partner, the Japan Innovation Party (Ishin), which argued that the Self-Defence Forces (SDF) should align more closely with “international standards”.

The coalition is planning to implement the changes by the end of 2026, local media reported last week.

Supporters say the changes would clarify Japan’s military identity, while critics warn the revival of pre-1945 terminology risks reigniting regional tensions and unsettling neighbours already wary of Tokyo’s defence posture.

Japan’s chief cabinet secretary Minoru Kihara and Ishin lawmaker Keishi Abe reportedly discussed the idea. Mr Abe has been pushing a broader agenda to reshape Japan’s defence policy.

His party wants to revise the second paragraph of Article 9 of the constitution, especially the clause stipulating “land, sea, and air forces, as well as other war potential, will never be maintained” by Japan as a means of settling international disputes.

The party is also pushing for explicit language confirming that Japan can maintain “national defence forces”.

“The SDF should be treated as the national defence force by eventually revising the Constitution,” he told the outlet.

“It is our responsibility to address SDF-related issues by renaming rank names and other terms to adjust to international standards through legal revisions and the issuance of a ministerial ordinance so as to boost the pride of SDF members.”

This comes just months after Japanese prime minister Sanae Takaichi escalated tensions with China by openly suggesting Japan could deploy its Self Defence Forces if a Chinese attack on Taiwan endangered the country’s survival.

The idea has drawn mixed reactions within Japan’s defence establishment. Officials and serving personnel have described the proposal as “unnecessary”, with some warning it could even hurt recruitment.

One senior officer said: “It is not what SDF members are asking for.”

Among the suggested rank changes, “ittohei” (private first class) and “nitohei” (private) have reportedly drawn the strongest resistance within the defence ministry and the SDF. Critics object to the inclusion of the word “hei” meaning “soldier”, while others argue the titles sound outdated and carry an unflattering, low-status image.

Robert Dujarric, co-director of the Institute of Contemporary Asian Studies at Temple University’s Japan campus, told the South China Morning Post that critics were exaggerating the significance of the change.

“This is not a return to fascism but simply adopting in Japanese the military titles that are already being used in English.

“Yes, some other countries are of course going to use this as another stick with which to beat Japan. But let’s be honest, North Korea is not exactly a poster child for pacifism.

“On a list of all the things that the government needs to do for the SDF, this would not even be in the top 1,000 items.

“They should instead be looking at increasing the salaries of SDF personnel to make it a more appealing job, providing better housing. What good is a different title really going to do,” he said.

North Korea also strongly criticised Japan’s proposal and said that it was proof that Japan was pursuing a “national policy to evolve into a war state and an aggressor state”. Earlier this month, the state-owned Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) said that through the proposal, “Japan is mulling to throw away even the mask of ‘pacifist state’ and make it a rule and national policy to evolve into a war state and an aggressor state”.

Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson, Mao Ning, was quoted as saying by China’s state-owned The Global Times that right-wing forces in Japan were making every effort to break free from the constraints of the pacifist constitution and are going further down the path of military expansion.

Ryo Tsunoda, a senior researcher of historical sociology at the Asia-Japan Research Institute of Ritsumeikan University, told The Asahi Shimbun: “After World War II, the Ground SDF has had a strong sense of awareness that it must break away from the Imperial Japanese Army from the standpoint of Japan’s war responsibility.”

However, he believed that attitudes were shifting, with a younger generation appearing more open to imperial-era symbolism.

The Independent has reached out to Japan’s ministry of defence for comment.