SINGAPORE -- In late February and early March, North Korea launched two antiship cruise missiles in the direction of Japan. Japan tried its best to downplay the events. In the first instance, it said the 90-km test did not technically violate the North's moratorium on ballistic-missile tests. After the second test, Tokyo said it had received advance notification from Pyongyang.
Nevertheless, the threat was obvious. After the second test, the Nikkei stock index closed at its lowest level since March 1983. And Tokyo Gov. Shintaro Ishihara tapped into the unspoken sentiments of some Japanese when he stated March 24 that Japan should rearm itself against the North Korean threat.
Although Japan hasn't taken the kind of steps envisioned by Ishihara, it recently put two military satellites into orbit to monitor North Korea's activities. The most important message the launches send is not whether Japan is any more or less dependent on the United States for intelligence, but that it is making deliberate and concerted efforts to defend itself against the military threat posed by North Korea.