Newsfrom Japan
Tokyo, July 19 (Jiji Press)–Senior members of the Japanese Defense Ministry and Self-Defense Forces have opened accounts on X, formerly Twitter, to counter China’s cognitive warfare by disseminating accurate information quickly.
In an unusual move for Japanese defense personnel, ministry spokesman Kimihito Aguin created his X account on June 26. One week later, top uniformed officer Gen. Hiroaki Uchikura, chief of staff of the ministry’s Joint Staff, opened his X account.
Both accounts have attracted more than 30,000 followers.
They opened the accounts after a series of China’s one-sided claims. In a post immediately after launching his account, Aguin rejected the Chinese Defense Ministry’s criticism of Japan for what it calls a new militarism, stating, “It contains claims not based on facts.” He later posted English and Chinese versions of his comment.
Uchikura has been more restrained, often citing posts from the official X account of the Joint Staff and providing supplementary explanations. His posts include videos of ships and aircraft participating in multilateral exercises and a photograph of a scene in which a letter of appreciation was given to a naval officer who served as a defense attache at the Australian Embassy in Tokyo.
[Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]
