An Inoffensive Rearmament

AN INOFFENSIVE

REARMAMENT

Frank Kowalski Jr., congressman-at-large from Connecticut, in his Washington, D.C., office, 1959
Courtesy of the Kowalski family

This book has been brought to publication with the generous assistance of Marguerite and Gerry Lenfest.

Naval Institute Press

291 Wood Road
Annapolis, MD 21402

© 2013 by Carol Reidy, Barry Kowalski, and Robert D. Eldridge

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or utilized in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying and recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Kowalski, Frank, 1907–1974.

An inoffensive rearmament : the making of the postwar Japanese Army / Col. Frank Kowalski, Robert D. Eldridge.

1 online resource.

Summary: “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”— Provided by publisher.

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Description based on print version record and CIP data provided by publisher; resource not viewed.

ISBN 978-1-61251-373-7 1. Japan—Defenses. 2. Japan—Armed Forces—History—20th century. 3. Japan—Military policy—History—20th century. 4. National security—Japan. 5. Japan—Foreign relations—United States. 6. United States—Foreign relations—Japan. I. Eldridge, Robert D. II. Title. III. Title: Making of the postwar Japanese Army.

UA845

355.00952'09045—dc23

2013043763
    

Print editions meet the requirements of ANSI/NISO z39.48-1992

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First printing

CONTENTS

           
Editor's Preface

  
1
       
Grace of Heaven

  
2
       
Japan before Korea

  
3
       
Basic Plan

  
4
       
Constitution Bans War

  
5
       
Yoshida's Views

  
6
       
Struggle for Control

  
7
       
Advisers and Operations

  
8
       
Organizational Problems

  
9
       
Leaders Fashion Armies

10
       
Seishin Kyōiku

11
       
Yobitai

12
       
Confusion and Conflict

13
       
The Imperial Military

14
       
Dawn of a New Era

15
       
Conclusion: A Critique

           
Notes

           
Index

EDITOR'S PREFACE

About the Book

The memoir you have before you is the detailed account of the early years of the postwar Japanese military covering the years 1950 through 1952, when the National Police Reserve (Kokka Keisatsu Yobitai), or NPR, and then the National Safety Force (Kokka Hoantai), or NSF—both predecessors to today's Japan Self-Defense Forces (Jieitai), or JSDF—were established. The author, Frank Kowalski Jr., a colonel in the United States Army, served as the deputy chief, Civil Affairs Section, General Headquarters, Supreme Commander for Allied Powers, and then chief of staff of the Military Advisory Assistance Group (MAAG) in Japan. The MAAG was tasked by General Douglas MacArthur to stand the NPR up following the issuance of a letter from MacArthur to Prime Minister Shigeru Yoshida on July 8, 1950, authorizing the Japanese to establish a force of 75,000 men and expand the Maritime Safety Board by an additional 8,000.
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The manuscript was completed in 1966, eight years after Kowalski had retired from the Army and three years after he had left Capitol Hill, having served two terms in the U.S. House of Representatives as a member of Congress from Connecticut.
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