TOKYO – Prime Minister Fumio Kishida justified the drastic overhaul of Japan’s security policy on Friday as necessary, given that tabletop exercises have shown current defences to be woefully inadequate to stave off an attack. The candid admission, it was hoped, will be grounds for what represents a drastic pivot from Japan’s post-war pacifism. By fiscal 2027, Japan will be the world’s third-largest military spender based on current budgets. It will, among other things, boast “counterstrike capabilities” and have an “active cyber defence”. Conservative newspapers like the Sankei Shimbun – which labelled Japan’s neighbours China, North Korea and Russia as...