Japan defense chief says world has entered 'a new era of crisis'

The international community has entered “a new era of crisis,” Japan’s recently installed defense chief said Monday, pointing to a drastic need for Tokyo to rethink its security approach amid growing threats from China, Russia and North Korea.

“The international community as a whole has entered the most trying time since the end of the previous war, and the existing order is being seriously challenged,” Defense Minister Yasukazu Hamada said Monday in an interview. “We believe that we are entering a new era of crisis.”

Pacifist Japan has found itself in a precarious security position, with China’s massive military buildup advancing, North Korea’s nuclear and missile programs continuing to grow, and Russia’s bloody war in Ukraine offering lessons in the fragility of the status quo.