In order to respond in a timely manner to Taiwan's incidents, Japan intends to revise the current basic policy for the use of civil transportation facilities across the country, hoping to open the Self-Defense Forces to make it easier to use civilian ports and airports in peacetime by March 2024.

Pictured is Yokohama Port.

(Bloomberg file photo)

[Special Commissioner Lin Cuiyi in Japan/Tokyo 6th Report] In order to respond to "Taiwan events" in a timely manner, Japan plans to revise the current basic policy for the use of civil transportation facilities across the country. It is hoped that before March 2024, the Self-Defense Forces will be able to Easier access to civilian ports and airports.

Nihon Keizai Shimbun reported on the 6th that once something happens to Taiwan, China may gather troops in the coastal waters of Taiwan before going to war. The Self-Defense Forces and the US military will also send a large number of troops to the surrounding waters. If the bases are not enough, flexible use of civilian facilities is also one of the options. The Japanese government At present, the facilities that may be used in the scenario are mainly facilities in the Southwest Islands and other places near the Taiwan Strait.

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Locking down South West Islands civil facilities

On the other hand, airports and ports are also bases for the evacuation of local residents.

At the time of emergency, it is estimated that 100,000 residents of the Sakishima Islands adjacent to Taiwan will be evacuated.

In order to transport in a short period of time, it may not be able to digest it only with the facilities of the Self-Defense Forces and Coast Guard.

If civilian facilities are used before an incident occurs, it will be easier to evacuate residents smoothly.

The report pointed out that there are currently no relevant regulations that give the Self-Defense Forces the right to use civilian infrastructure in peacetime. If the Self-Defense Forces need to use civilian ports and airports during exercises, they must first apply to the local government.

The Ministry of Defense stated that sometimes local leaders were forced to change the content of the drills because they refused to cooperate.

In the middle of last month, the Japanese Self-Defense Force and the U.S. military held the biennial large-scale "Sword" large-scale joint practical exercise. Yonaguni Island, which is the closest to Taiwan, also obtained the consent of the mayor of Yonaguni Town in advance, but the governor of Okinawa County objected.

According to reports, the government intends to revise the "basic policy" stipulated by the Minister of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism for the use of various facilities to make it easier for the Self-Defense Forces to use these civilian facilities in normal times, adding that even in normal times, if they are of high importance, the Self-Defense Forces can also submit Mechanism required by the government.

There are also opinions within the government that, in addition to the Self-Defense Forces, relevant regulations for use by the US military should also be included.

However, since the "basic policy" is not mandatory, although the government expects local governments to actively cooperate, the effectiveness is not yet clear.

Regarding the Self-Defense Force's desire to increase the use of civilian facilities, Okinawa County advocates that it should not affect the use of people's livelihood at airports and ports on outlying islands.

In addition, when Japan is under armed attack, the current law on the use of specific public facilities stipulates that the Self-Defense Forces can request the local government to give priority to the use of civilian facilities. The government and the ruling party also hope to amend the law to improve the effectiveness of this requirement.