Japan’s former top uniformed military officer has called for establishing three “red lines” in strategic competition with China, including maintaining defenses along the first island chain in the western Pacific.
Yoshihide Yoshida, president of Japan’s National Defense Academy, outlined the three priorities at the 13th Mt. Fuji Dialogue, an annual U.S.–Japan policy forum that was held in Tokyo on Oct. 24. They are the first island chain connecting Okinawa, Taiwan and the Philippines; effective nuclear deterrence; and maintaining the West’s technological advantage, according to Nikkei, a Japanese financial newspaper.
Yoshida served as chief of the joint staff, Japan’s highest ranking uniformed military position, before retiring from the Self-Defense Forces in August 2025. He became president of the National Defense Academy, which educates future Japanese military officers, in April….