With the Liberal Democratic Party widely predicted to come out on top in Sunday's election, Kevin Maher, a former senior U.S. State Department official, said an LDP-led government must act quickly to demonstrate Japan's readiness to effectively respond to the threat posed by an increasingly bellicose China.
Maher, who was replaced as director of the Department of State's Office of Japan Affairs in March 2011, said the row over the Senkaku Islands is just one example of the mounting regional threat stemming from China's belligerent behavior.
However, he stressed that a display by Tokyo of its enhanced defense capabilities would send a strong message to Beijing that Japan is prepared to defend its sovereign territory alongside its key security partner, the United States.