18th Feb. 2009

To friends in Europe who are against the Missile Defense system and the Space Shield

We are several citizen groups which are respectively committed in peaceful ways to movements of anti-MD system and anti-US Bases in Japan. We would like to convey, by this message, our solidarity with all who are against the deployment of the US MD system into the eastern Europe.  We, who live with the various problems arising from many US bases occupying our homeland, always look enviously at the unified efforts in the anti-radar movement by citizens and the League of Mayors in Czech Republic.  Your movement has encouraged us a lot and we thank you for that.

Japanese government introduced the MD system in Dec. 2003, and ever since, its deployment has been accelerated here along with the US’ deployment of its own MD system in Japan.

In June 2006, a transferable type of X-band radar was deployed by the US for the first time throughout the world in Shariki, a small, sparsely-populated town in the most-northern prefecture of Aomori on the main land of Japan. This was followed by its globally-second time-deployment into Israel in Sep.2008.

The US X-band radar in Japan is aimed at detecting possible ballistic missile launches from North Korea to Hawaii, making the Japanese main land and islands “a shield “ for defending the USA. This X-band radar in Shariki is guarded by BlackWater Worldwide, a US private military company infamous for its war crimes in Iraq War.

Along with this deployment, the US demanded a limited-flight-zone around Shariki for indefinite duration.  This special demand was made just for one military facility, which was also for the first time. This zone has already turned out to be problematic, as the investigation of a maritime accident in the nearby sea was hindered due to the privileged agreement.

Japanese government has become deeply involved in the US MD system through the current joint development with the US of the improved model of SM3 (Standard Missile 3), an improved intercepting missile loaded on an aegis cruiser. Presently, five US’ aegis cruisers based on Yokosuka, and two aegis cruiser belonging to our Maritime Self  Defense Force are equipped with SM3, making the number of the latter four in the near future.  As for PAC3 (Patriot Missile 3), it has been deployed in the US base in Kadena, Okinawa and in five bases of ASDF around Tokyo, but finally, ASDF is going to deploy PAC3 in its 11 bases throughout Japan.  To our great anxiety, through this joint SM3 development and licensed production of PAC3 in Japan, Japanese private military companies have become one with those in the US, thus newly emerging in Japan as the Japanese military-industrial complex.

At the same time, the MD system in Japan has greatly eroded both the pacifism and the peace-oriented principles based on the Article 9 of the Constitution of Japan which stipulates the renunciation of war as a sovereign right and non-maintenance of armed forces with war potential.

Specifically the MD system has watered down the three principles prohibiting exporting weapons, and also the principle stipulating peaceful use of the space.

Contrary to the propaganda by both the government of US and that of Japan, the US MD system, which would enable an easier first strike by making counter-attack powerless, should be called “a device for prompting pre-emptive attack.” And actually because of this nature, it has been causing chain reactions of armament expansion in northeastern Asia.

However, we will not just wait and see, letting this happen.  Here in Japan, anti-MD movement is spreading through experienced local campaigns in PAC3 deployment areas.  In the forthcoming April, the 17th international conference of the Global Network Against Weapons & Nuclear Power in Space will be hosted by its Korean Committee in Seoul, South Korea.  We consider this a meaningful step towards turning the northeastern Asia, which is still under the atmosphere of the Cold War, into a nuclear & missile-free region.  Those in South Korea who are against the US-Japan MD system and like-minded those in Japan will soon start cooperating.

Not only in Japan but in the world as well, poverty has spread because of economical and financial crises.

We should invest our taxes in getting rid of poverty or in environmental conservation, not in military spending.  It is missile-reduction, not the Missile Defense, that is most necessary to us.

Let us keep up our efforts in order to realize our goal in common－a world free of the Missile Defense and missile attacks.

In solidarity,

Koji Sugihara ( No! to Nukes and the Missile Defense Campaign )

Endorsing groups:

No! to Nukes and Missile Defense Campaign / Tokyo
Peace Voice Action Network / Saitama
No to Patriot Missile! Action Committee against Narashino Base / Chiba
Yokosuka Peace Fleets / Kanagawa
Nonnuclear Citizen Declaration Campaign Yokosuka / Kanagawa
No! AWACS Society Hamamatsu / Shizuoka
No War Network / Aichi
Citizen Action Net Work Nagasaki / Nagasaki
Committee against the Co-use of Tsuiki JASDF Base by SDF and U.S Military and
Relocation of U.S Marines to Tsuiki Base / Fukuoka