An Inoffensive Rearmament: The Making of the Postwar Japanese Army - Hardcover

Kowalski, Col. Frank

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 1591142261 ISBN 13: 9781591142263

Publisher: Naval Institute Press, 2014

Synopsis

Col. Frank Kowalski served as the Chief of Staff of the American military advisory group that helped establish the National Police Reserve, the predecessor to the Japan Self-Defense Forces during its first two years of existence. His work provides a detailed account of the manning, logistics, and personalities involved in standing up--on short notice--of a force of approximately 75,000, while sharing insights about the diplomatic, political, legal, and constitutional challenges his headquarters and his Japanese counterparts faced in rearming Japan in the wake of the sudden outbreak of the Korean War. Published in Japanese in 1969, this is the first English version of this edition, and includes a biographic section about Kowalski.

About this title

About the Author:

Col. Frank Kowalski, USA, and member of Congress from Connecticut, died in 1974. He was Chief Military Governor in Kyoto, Japan, 1948-49 and Deputy Chief of Civil Affairs in Japan 1950-52.

Robert Eldridge is as the deputy assistant chief of staff for Marine Corps Installations Pacific. He is the co-editor and translator of Fighting Spirit.

Review:

"A reader that experienced the occupations of Iraq and Afghanistan will appreciate An Inoffensive Rearmament. Written by a key leader charged to develop the National Police Reserve (later the Self-Defense Forces) in post-World War II Japan, the work provides remarkable insights into how the United States handled a partner nation that was once an enemy. Translated from the original Japanese, the work balances the political scene and mercurial relationship between post-World war II Japan and pre-Korean War United States."--Military Review

"This book gives a close and detailed look at Japan, as she sought to return to being a political and economic power on the world stage. In concluding his story, the author asks the question, 'Where would Japan sit today upon the world stage if the Korean War had not been fought?' The book provides an excellent case study of unforeseen and unwanted consequences resulting from a political-military action. In this case, an action that sought to conquer South Korea failed and resulted in the promotion of both South Korea and Japan as world economic powers. This is a book well worth reading by anyone interested in American foreign policy, modern Japanese history, or the U.S. Army's role in nation building."--Journal of America's Military Past

About this edition

• Publisher: Naval Institute Press
• Publication date: 2014
• ISBN 10: 1591142261
• ISBN 13: 9781591142263
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 224
• Editor: Eldridge Robert D.