Why is Japan changing its ban on exporting lethal weapons, and why is it so controversial?

By MARI YAMAGUCHI
Associated Press

TOKYO (AP) — Japan’s Cabinet OK’d a plan to sell future next-generation fighter jets to other countries on Tuesday, its latest step away from the pacifist principles the country adopted at the end of World War II. The controversial decision to allow international arms sales is expected to help secure Japan’s role in a year-old joint fighter development project with Italy and the U.K., but it’s also part of a move to build up Japan’s arms industry and bolster its role in global affairs. For now, Tokyo says that it doesn’t plan to export lethal weapons other than the new fighters, which aren’t expected to enter service until 2035.