Germany and Japan, aligned as Axis powers during World War II and disarmed under Allied occupation, are now pursuing their largest military expansions since the post-war era began. The shift, detailed by the New York Times and reported by United Press International, reflects a convergence of pressures: Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, China’s increasingly assertive military posture under President Xi Jinping, and U.S. President Donald Trump’s threats to reconsider Washington’s security commitments to allies.
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz laid the financial foundation for a major increase in military spending before taking office by securing an easing of Germany’s constitutional borrowing restrictions. According to the Times, German defense spending could eventually surpass the combined military budgets of Britain and France. Germany has also worked closely with Ukraine on developing and deploying new weapons and has sought discussions with France about extending French nuclear deterrence protections to European allies.
Japan has undergone a comparable transformation under conservative Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi, who came to power last year after campaigning on a stronger national defense. Her government has advanced plans to deploy long-range missiles in southern Japan and further loosen restrictions on arms exports imposed after World War II. Japan’s defense budget this year totals about $58 billion, according to the Times.
Tokyo also signed a roughly $6.5 billion agreement to supply warships to Australia and is pursuing possible naval export deals with the Philippines and Indonesia, the Times reported.
“Countries that support the rules-based international order must move closer together and clearly demonstrate what we stand for,” German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius said during a visit to a Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force base in March.
Takaichi, speaking about the broader security environment, said: “No country can now protect its peace and security by itself.” She added that Japan’s commitment to remaining a peaceful nation had not changed in more than 80 years.
The two countries are expected to make their defense partnership more visible during the Group of Seven summit being held this week in Évian-les-Bains, France. The cooperation involves exchanges of expertise, technology and military equipment, including drones and helicopters.
China and Russia have accused Takaichi’s government of reviving Japanese militarism. The Times noted that the cooperation does not represent a revival of the wartime Axis alliance, as Germany is helping Ukraine defend itself against Russia while Japan describes its military buildup as a defensive response to threats from China and North Korea.
Domestic opposition
Both governments face significant political obstacles to their military expansion.
About two-thirds of Germans support higher defense spending, a recent poll cited by the Times found. Germany’s armed forces, however, have struggled to attract enough young volunteers in the absence of mandatory military service.
In Japan, tens of thousands of people demonstrated in Tokyo this spring against the government’s expansion of arms exports and plans to establish a national intelligence agency, the Times reported. Many protesters said they feared the policies could undermine Article 9 of Japan’s Constitution, which renounces war and the use of force to settle international disputes.
Trump has welcomed increased military spending by U.S. allies but offered a more ambiguous response to Japan’s buildup. Referring to Gen. Douglas MacArthur, who oversaw the Allied occupation of Japan after World War II, Trump said he was unsure whether MacArthur would have approved of a rearmed Japan, according to the Times.
Alexandra Sakaki, a Japan specialist at the German Institute for International and Security Affairs in Berlin, said both countries would have to prepare their citizens for a fundamentally different relationship with their armed forces.
“If policies such as conscription are introduced, society as a whole will have to think about its relationship with the military in a completely different way,” Sakaki said. “Japan and Germany must be prepared to persuade the public to support their military vision.”
European defense boom strains local communities
Beyond Germany’s buildup, the war in Ukraine has driven a wider defense industry expansion across Europe. The Wall Street Journal reported that in Barrow-in-Furness, a port town in northwestern England, British defense company BAE Systems is expanding its workforce to about 14,000 employees as it builds nuclear-powered attack submarines under the security partnership among Australia, Britain and the United States.
The company received a $5.4 billion contract connected to the construction of as many as 12 submarines, the Journal said. Higher wages at the shipyard have drawn mechanics, driving instructors and nurses away from local employers, worsening labor shortages, and housing costs have risen sharply.
“We’ve got weapons of mass destruction, but we haven’t got a plasterer,” a local restaurant manager told the Journal. A bartender said the defense expansion was “making this town and breaking it at the same time.”
In Bergerac, France, explosives manufacturer Eurenco invested about $231 million to expand its workforce from 200 to 600 people, according to the Journal. The company’s annual revenue increased more than threefold, from about $220 million to approximately $670 million. Local benefits have been limited, however, because many employees commute from outside the area and much of the assembly process is automated, the Journal reported.
Bergerac Mayor Fabien Ruet said the town had little influence over the rapid industrial expansion. “We are merely spectators,” Ruet said.
The experiences of Germany, Japan and European defense manufacturing towns show that military expansion can strengthen national security and generate investment while also creating political, social and economic strains, according to the reports.