Sporting dark face paint and clutching a gun, teenage soldier-in-training Takuma Hiyane crawls across a field in Okinawa, the front line of the nation's defense, as anxiety grows over China's territorial ambitions.
As the world marks the 80th anniversary of World War II, Japan — which has been officially pacifist since its defeat — is trying to lure more talent into its armed forces.
Tokyo began upping its military spending in 2023 and aims to make outlays reach 2% of its gross domestic product by the end of the 2027 fiscal year, but has come under pressure from Washington to boost it even further.
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