Japan ‘needs to possess nuclear weapons’: Report

​​​​​​​By Berk Kutay Gokmen

ISTANBUL (AA) – Japan “needs to possess nuclear weapons,” Kyodo News reported Thursday, citing a source from the prime minister's office.

It came during an unofficial exchange with journalists.

"I think we should possess nuclear weapons," said an official, who is reportedly involved in devising security policy under Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi. "In the end, we can only rely on ourselves."

The official, however, also said, "It isn't something that can be done quickly, like just going to a convenience store to buy something."

The news agency noted that the remarks “could trigger a backlash both in Japan and abroad,” as the government's position that Japan, “as the only country to have suffered atomic bombings, should lead efforts to rid the world of nuclear weapons.”

Japan’s pacifist Constitution established an exclusively defense-oriented policy following its defeat at the end of World War II.

The US dropped an atomic bomb on Hiroshima, killing an estimated 140,000 people on Aug. 6, 1945. A second bomb hit Nagasaki on Aug. 9, killing an additional 70,000. Japan formally surrendered Aug. 15, 1945, marking the end of the war.

The demand for nuclear weapons comes amid tensions with China, which has escalated since Nov. 7, when Takaichi said a Chinese attack on Taiwan could legally constitute a “survival-threatening situation,” potentially allowing Japan to exercise the right of collective self-defense.

Beijing sharply criticized the remarks, urged Chinese tourists to avoid Japan, suspended seafood imports and postponed a trilateral culture ministers’ meeting with Japan and South Korea.