By Joseph Essertier, World BEYOND War, January 23, 2026

On the 3rd of January in Japan, we heard the news that U.S. President Donald Trump had ordered an attack on Venezuela and the abduction of their head of state, President Nicolas Maduro and his wife. On social media, people in Japan expressed widespread shock. Peace advocates in this country emphasized that Japan’s Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi did not criticize Trump for these “strikes” on a sovereign nation and the “removal” of Maduro — an outrageous violation of international law.

On the 8th of January, I participated in an emergency protest with about 25 people in front of the U.S. Consulate in Nagoya, where I live.

Although the Nagoya Consulate does not provide services for U.S. citizens, street protests against U.S. state violence are often held there.

On January 17th, Japan for a World BEYOND War did a street protest as part of World BEYOND War’s Global Day of Action in Solidarity with Venezuela. We did it from 17:00 to 18:00, which is just before the regular weekly protest (between 18:00 and 19:00) against the new Henoko base.

YAMAMOTO Mihagi, one of the most prominent and important advocates for peace in this region of Japan, and someone who has worked for peace consistently ever since the Vietnam War, gave a speech that mostly sums up my thoughts, so I take the liberty of simply presenting a translation below.

YAMAMOTO Mihagi’s speech:

This [attack on Venezuela] is clearly a violation of the United Nations Charter and also a violation of international law. In the past, when there was no framework of international law, Japan colonized Korea and Taiwan, and European countries likewise colonized Africa and many other regions. However, in the twentieth century, once nations became independent and sovereign, [colonialism] became something that would never be allowed—to invade sovereign states like this by force. Unfortunately, Russia went ahead and invaded Ukraine.

But regarding what U.S. President Trump has done, have we really seen voices of criticism rise around the world? Japan has imposed economic sanctions on Russia, yet the current Prime Minister, Takaichi, has not said a single word criticizing Trump or calling his actions a violation of international law. On the other hand, they constantly talk—through the media—about the “rule of law” and how “changes to the status quo by force must not be allowed,” warning us about a Taiwan contingency and the threat from China.

But what the United States is doing itself is exactly a change to the status quo by force. Even a child can understand this. There is no state of war. Under the pretext of drug trafficking, the U.S. previously attacked Venezuelan vessels and killed more than 100 people. Acts like this have become almost routine within the United States. Trump himself has said that international law and such things do not matter to him. This president is truly terrifying to me.

And yet, the current Liberal Democratic Party and the Ishin–Takaichi administration are clinging to and following an America that is destroying the global legal framework. [Note: Nippon Ishin no Kai has recently become a ruling coalition with PM Takaichi’s party, the LDP]. What Trump is thinking now is that the Western Hemisphere will be dominated by the United States, and that he does not care about Asia anymore. He has said that he does not care about a Taiwan contingency or about China attacking.

Japan, following America’s China strategy, has continued to expand its military under the banner of a Taiwan contingency and the so-called “China threat.” But now, Japan is being abandoned by the United States. When Ms. Takichi stated that, in the event of a Taiwan contingency, the Self-Defense Forces would participate under Japan’s security legislation as a “situation threatening Japan’s survival,” relations between Japan and China deteriorated severely.

The current LDP administration is eager to go to war with China, but the United States has no intention of fighting a war with them.

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