Commentary: Trump’s South Korea defence flip reminds Japan it has no Plan B

TOKYO: On Wednesday night (Aug 19), after a summer of sharply escalating regional tension, protesters lined the roads near Sanae Takaichi’s residence bellowing pleas for the Japanese prime minister to stick to pacifism under the “peace clause” of the country’s constitution. Unspoken, as always on these occasions, was an acknowledgment that this clause is underwritten by one of the most enduring and unambiguous Plan A’s in postwar geopolitics. Namely that, should a serious threat emerge, pacifist Japan can rely on the military protection of the United States under the 1951 alliance between the two countries. That’s 75 years not just…