The Increase in the Defense Budget

昨年書いたエッセイです。

2024年2月24、ロシアによるウクライナへの侵攻開始が３年目に入りました。

これだけ長く続けば、犠牲者は増え、軍事費も嵩みますね。

戦争に費やす資金と労力を、国際社会が武力に頼らずに平和共存を達成する方法を探るのに投入してはどうかと思います。

The Japanese government decided to increase its defense budget by 26.3% annually from fiscal year 2023 to 2027 last year, boosting it to 43 trillion yen over the next five years. The country's defense spending will be doubled from approximately 1% of gross domestic product (GDP) to 2% then. The decision was driven by their concerns over the potential threats posed by China, North Korea and Russia.

I wonder if they could allocate their efforts and resources to seek the way to get coexist in the international community without relying on military power. Also, I think that the government should spend more money on supporting people's livelihoods, as more and more people are suffering from price hikes due to high material and logistic costs, rising oil prices and the weak yen.

Having said that, many other countries have increased their military spending as well in response to Russia's invasion of Ukraine and growing tensions in East Asia. According to the Stockholm International Peace Institute, global military expenditure reached an all-time high of 2.24 trillion dollars last year. Despite continued efforts for world peace by many activists, what makes human beings still rely on military force?

戦争で最も嫌なことは、何の罪のない民間人が犠牲になること。
What I detest the most regarding wars is that many innocent civilians are killed and injured, lose their homes, and are obliged to live in horror and misery, involved in combats between armed forces.

May peace come to people in wartime regions at the soonest possible time.