# Three Principles

Japan’s Quiet Rearmament: How a Surge in ‘Security Aid’ Is Remaking Its Regional Role

Japan’s OSA security‑aid programme has expanded rapidly in scale and scope, with the 2026 budget jumping to 18.1 billion yen and recipient lists growing across the Indo‑Pacific. Originally framed as non‑lethal capacity‑building, OSA is being used to normalise overseas defence ties, create defence industrial linkages and potentially open the door to more offensive exports if legal constraints are loosened.