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The FSX: Source of Friction and Cooperation
| Article
# : |
15982 |
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Section : |
CURRENT ISSUES
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| Issue
Date : |
7 / 1989 |
1,919 Words |
| Author
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Osamu Namatame
Gen. Osamu Namatame, who retired from Japan's Air Self-Defense
Force in 1983, is now director of the Japanese Center for
Strategic Studies. |
The decision by the United States and Japan to build a new fighter airplane, known as the FSX, was initially purely a defense issue. But the proposal for joint development has led to friction between the two allies over U.S. charges that the deal will give the Japanese vital U.S. technology.
Japan has become an economic giant and is currently regarded as one of the most technologically advanced countries in the world. On the other hand, the national power of the United States has relatively declined as Japan's has increased. Therefore it is natural in a sense that the United States has come to fear Japan's economic and technological capabilities.
Japan recognizes that it owes a great deal to the United States. Its Self-Defense Forces, which started from scratch, could only have made the progress seen so far with assistance from the United States. Putting it succinctly, it would be impossible for Japan to develop a completely new fighter plane by itself. Although Japan leads the world in some technological fields, it would have to import engines. Besides, the FSX incorporates a highly sophisticated weapons system that can only be developed through the cooperation of about 70 to 80 companies. It was quite apparent from the start that Japan needed the cooperation of the United States.
Japan's aviation industry resumed activity in 1957 after stopping at the end of World War II. Such aircraft as YS-11 planes, C-1 transport planes, and T-2 and F-1 fighters have been developed. However, these planes are not entirely domestically made. The limited capabilities of Japan's aviation industry can be easily seen at the Farnborough, England, and Paris
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