Continuity Through Transformation: Strategic Articulation and the Hybridization of Japan’s Security Identity (1971-2024)

This thesis examines the evolution of Japan’s security identity in the period from 1971 to 2024. While most of the existing literature interprets this process as a sequence of clearly defined, distinct phases, this study argues that Japan’s identity transformation can instead be better understood as a process of identity hybridization. Adopting a constructivist theoretical approach, the research employs a qualitative analysis of primary sources in English, such as Ministry of Foreign Affairs Diplomatic Bluebooks, National Security Strategies, National Defense Program Guidelines, speeches and other governmental documents, accompanied by secondary scholarship in both English and Japanese. In particular, four key historical phases will be considered: the shift from postwar pacifism to the proto-proactive stance in the 1970s-1980s; the legitimacy crisis unfolded after the Gulf Crisis; the consolidation of proactive pacifism in the 2000s-2010s; and the recent rise of Japan as a security provider within the framework of the Free and Open Indo-Pacific strategy. This thesis therefore argues that Japan’s contemporary security posture does not represent a break from its pacifist postwar identity. Rather, it constitutes the outcome of a long-term process of discursive reconfiguration through which pacifism has been repeatedly reinterpreted, stretched, and hybridized with emerging strategic priorities. This perspective, while providing insights on the evolution of Japan’s security posture, can also represent an analytical tool to contribute to the understanding of how states hybridize their identity narratives with emerging strategic priorities.