ABSTRACT
In mid-1971 a most intriguing speech, touching on lessons gained from World War II, was made before the America-Japan Society in Tokyo by one of Japan’s most nimble and influential politicians. Yasuhiro Nakasone, an early advocate of rearmament, told his audience that Japan’s diplomacy should henceforth rest on four principles:
1. Japan must do nothing beyond its national strength. 2. Japan must take no gambler’s risks. 3. Japan must have a reliable ally. 4. Japan must not be isolated from world currents.
