CDP to Come Up with New Perspective on Security Legislation

Tokyo, Jan. 4 (Jiji Press)–The main opposition Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan plans to compile as early as this spring a new perspective on the country’s security legislation, which tolerate its exercise of the right to collective self-defense. The party may consider reviewing a clause in its basic policy platform that calls for abolishing what it claims are unconstitutional parts of the legislation enacted in 2015. The move is designed for the CDP to demonstrate its “realistic approach” in a bid to seize power as well as to join forces with the Democratic Party for the People and Komeito, both of which are tolerant of the security legislation. With some CDP members remaining cautious, however, the review process could be challenging. CDP leader Yoshihiko Noda has called for “gathering centrist forces,” in response to the launch last October of the administration of Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi, known for her conservative policy stance, and the rise of conservative party Sanseito. As security policy could be a hurdle in the efforts, Noda said, “We will sort out our arguments while keeping realistic policies in mind.” The work to formulate the CDP’s new perspective on the security legislation has already started mainly at a party committee on foreign and security policies, headed by former Foreign Minister Katsuya Okada. At a meeting in mid-December 2025, Okada said: “In every election in the past, we have said that unconstitutional parts of the security legislation are invalid. But I think this can no longer work, so we should go a little deeper.” When it was the coalition partner of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party, Komeito was involved in the discussions to change the interpretation of the Constitution to tolerate the country’s limited exercise of the collective self-defense right. At the time, the now-defunct Democratic Party of Japan, a predecessor of the CDP, strongly opposed the move. A senior CDP official who is familiar with the situation at the time, said, “We may need to consider the possibility of tolerating the security legislation in order to join hands with Komeito.” As a reason for his party distancing itself from the CDP, DPFP leader Yuichiro Tamaki has cited a gap between the two parties over security policy. Apparently having this in mind, Noda said at a meeting of opposition parties in October 2025 that “unconstitutional parts have not been found” in the security legislation. Later that month, former CDP leader Yukio Edano said, “No unconstitutional parts are in the security legislation, so there is no need to change them.” The remark by Edano, the founder of the previous CDP, especially sent shockwaves. He launched the party in autumn 2017 with liberal politicians who opposed the security legislation. “Holding a debate with a predetermined conclusion would cause the party to break,” a veteran liberal member of the current CDP warned. As a near-term solution, the party will only show a new direction over the security legislation without changing the related wording in its basic policy platform, a CDP official predicted. “I hope we will take a step forward and show that the CDP is not so different from the DPFP and Komeito,” the official said. END [Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]