Kiji kukka ŭi t’ansaeng: Ilbon i ch’irŭn Han’guk chŏnjaeng by Nam Kijeong (review)

How did the Korean War impact Japan? The author argues that Japan developed into a “base-state” (kiji kukka) as a result of this war. When the Korean War erupted, Japan became strategically vital for the free world, as it possessed military resources the United Nations needed to fight the war. Using those resources, however, could mean violation of the 1947 Japanese constitution that banned militarism. Could Japan assist the UN’s war efforts in Korea without violating its own constitution? The US and Japan found their solution in the following formula. First, Japan would not have a military, so as to prevent the re-emergence of militarism; second, in order to ensure Japan’s security, whatever military capabilities Japan did possess would be made available to the US, who would do the actual fighting and protect Japan from outside threat. Because Japan thereby allowed the US to install bases and station American troops on its soil, the author has coined the term “base-state” to describe this situation.

Chapter one portrays the escalation of Sino-Japanese tensions in the antebellum years. For instance, former Japanese military officers were dispatched to Taiwan to assist the Kuomintang in formulating plans to attack the newly established People’s Republic of China (PRC), while the PRC expressed concerns about possible Japanese military collusion in Korea. Simply put, with the intensification of the US-Soviet rivalry, there were indications of Japan’s re-militarization, which its communist neighbors interpreted as the possible re-emergence of a Japanese threat.

Chapter two examines how Japan’s resources were mobilized after the outbreak of the Korean War. Japan’s industrial and defense assets—including factories, railroads, ports, ships, repair centers, training camps, hospitals, and airfields—were used to support the UN mission in Korea. A logistical command was instituted to facilitate the mobilization of such resources. In short, Japan became a “logistical fortress.”

Chapter three examines how the Korean War affected Japan’s economy. As Japan started to produce, transport, and repair military goods, its economy began to improve. Unemployment was tackled and labor complaints silenced. At the same time, Japan’s economy, became inextricably linked with the military and geared towards heavy industries.

Chapter four explains how Japan, in supporting the UN war effort, engaged in certain questionable activities. Japanese manpower was physically present at the warfront in Korea and contributed to some very crucial missions, including the Incheon landing operations and January 4th evacuation. Some Japanese individuals had even joined the US military to actually see combat. Here the author raises the following question: could Japan really be considered a “peace state” (heiwa kokka)?

The remaining chapters explore how the Japanese public responded to various developments following the Korean War. Chapter five traces the origins of discourse on restoring Japan to a “normal state.” With the outbreak of the Korean War, many people across the political spectrum—most prominently the conservatives, who were de-purged—advocated Japan’s re-armament. The recent controversy over Shinzo Abe’s statement—the idea that Japan is entitled to have a military and the freedom to decide on how to use it—had thus already found germination during the Korean War.

Chapter six examines the Japanese left’s opposition to Japan’s transformation into a base-state. While the Japanese communists initially believed that both revolution and amity with the US could be achieved, the intensification of Cold War rivalries drove the communists to become more aggressive in their opposition to US policies in Japan. However, this leftist struggle was unsuccessful because of internal conflict among the Japanese communists, as well as the ethnic divide between Koreans and Japanese within the communist community in Japan.

Chapter seven analyzes how intellectuals responded to Japan’s transformation into a base-state. Between 1945 and 1952, prominent Japanese intellectuals released three statements. These...